


Chaos Theory

by angelofthequeers



Series: Variables [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Action, Actual Trauma, Adorable Castiel, Adventure, Agender Angels, Angelic Possession, Angels, Angels are Dicks, Asexual Character, BAMF Castiel, BAMF Meg, BAMF Sam Winchester, Bisexual Dean, Blood, Blood and Gore, Canonical Character Death, Cool Dean, Dean Has PTSD - Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Dean Has a Sexuality Crisis, Death, Demonic Possession, Demons, Demons Are Assholes, Dysfunctional Family, Family, Friendship, Gen, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Human Meg, John Winchester Being an Asshole, Like Not Just Brushed Off in an Episode or Something, Lots of it, Male-Female Friendship, Meg Lives, Nephilim, Not Everything's About Sex, Original Character Death(s), Possessed Dean, Possessed Sam, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pre-Slash, Protective Dean Winchester, The Family Business, Violence, Winchester Cousin, Wing Grooming, but he's a good guy, hunting things, minimal romance, powers, saving people
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-06
Updated: 2016-02-17
Packaged: 2018-05-05 06:15:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 43
Words: 113,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5364539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelofthequeers/pseuds/angelofthequeers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>We all know the story of Sam and Dean Winchester.We know the stories of those they meet, like Castiel, Meg and even Adam. But add a cousin - Louise Winchester, the middle child, both the self-sacrificing big sister and the baby girl who needs protecting - and what do you get? Chaos. Come along on this journey to see how much one person can affect the lives of everyone around her!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Monsters with Issues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise learns that shifters are nasty sons of bitches, especially when they look like Dean.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> So…hi! Welcome to what I hope will be the first full-length fic over more than one episode that I actually finish! I will warn you, it does diverge from canon around S2 but it does follow the Apocalypse plotline at around S5, with some of my changes. But I hope to switch things enough to keep y'all entertained!
> 
> And yes, I know that Dean doesn't drop the f-bomb in the show. But we all know that's the damn show and their language restrictions ;)

**Chapter 1. Monsters with Issues**

"Come on, Lou! You know you can't hide from your big brother!"

Louise Winchester skidded around the corner, panting heavily and desperately trying to put as much distance between her and that monster as possible. Because it might be wearing her brother's face but it was  _not_  Dean. And Louise couldn't let it grab her!

When she was certain that she'd finally managed to outrun it, she leaned against the brick wall of a nearby building, wheezing and trying to choke in breath. She once again thanked her weird ass abilities, which were the only reason she had been able to sense the twisted, hideous essence inside the shifter pretending to be Dean – otherwise, he'd have easily nabbed her and she'd end up just like Sam!

' _Sammy!'_  Louise thought hopelessly. The shifter had taken great pleasure in gloating that he'd managed to capture her baby brother and that he was going to kill Sam as slowly and painfully and messily as possible and Louise's only hope was that he'd wait until he had her before killing Sam.

' _I have to plan my next move,'_  Louise thought. She wasn't much of a planner – she took after her older brother more than her younger one, after all – but Sam and Dean's lives depended on her not losing her head and getting herself snatched as well!

Well, technically she wasn't Sam and Dean's sister. She was their cousin; daughter of Catherine Winchester, who was their father's older sister. But Louise had never known her father, who had fucked off out of their lives as soon as he'd known that Cathy was pregnant (at least, that was what John had told her) and left John and his wife Mary to support Cathy. John had been more of a father to Louise than her own and that hadn't changed when he'd taken her in after that fire all those years ago that had claimed Mary and Cathy, even though he'd turned into a complete hardass who'd treated them more like soldiers than children.

' _What am I doing?'_ Louise thought.  _'Why am I thinking about Mom and Aunt Mary? How am I gonna save Sam and Dean?'_

Louise tugged at the sleeve of her purple leather jacket; something that she'd been doing for years. According to Dean, purple was a 'weak, girly colour' and he had mocked her more often than not for wearing it but it had been her mother's; one of the few things to survive the fire, and only because Cathy had been forgetful enough to leave it in the Impala that night. Louise remembered that rare night when John had been drunk enough to talk about Cathy and she'd learned that her mother had been 'huge on leather since her big brother got one of his own'.

"You never saw her without one from the age of fourteen," John had chuckled drunkenly to eight year old Louise, who was hanging onto his every word. "She loved rock music as well, so she'd dance around and wave her jacket in the air as she sang – and, mind you, she couldn't sing to save her life – and all you could do was just put up with it." He sighed, his eyes shining sadly. "I miss them, Lou. Cathy and Mary. God, I just miss 'em so much…"

That was the first and one of the only times Louise had ever seen him so vulnerable. Maybe that was why she tended to respect him more like Dean, rather than rip at his throat like Sam had a habit of doing…

' _Focus!'_ Louise chided.  _'One of these days, you're gonna get killed while you daydream!'_

She had to find somewhere safe. Once she had sanctuary, she could figure out a plan to save Sam and Dean and then they could deal with the shifter together! Becky's wasn't an option; the shifter had just nearly murdered Sam's poor friend, so not only was Becky likely to turn her away by association but her house was still a crime scene and after years of impersonating officials, Louise didn't want to push her luck with the authorities.

After a few more minutes of recovering, Louise decided that she'd better get a move on and head back to the sewer to scout and plan her next move. Rounding the corner, she crashed into a blonde woman and staggered back.

"Crap!" she cursed. "I'm sorry – Becky?" she blinked. Becky grinned at her but Louise suddenly stiffened. If she frowned and concentrated…there! She could feel something dark and horrible inside the blonde, even if she couldn't see it!

"Hey, Louise!" the shifter said. "Fancy seeing you here!"

Louise smiled shakily.

"I'm in a bit of a hurry, Becky," she said. "So I'm just gonna go…y'know, lots to do!"

She hadn't even made it two feet away before the shifter grabbed her wrist.

"You know what I am," the shifter mused. "Somehow, you can tell I'm not Becky."

"Yeah! You're an ugly ass freak with issues!" Louise snapped. She tried to pull out her silver knife but the shifter was too fast; an explosion of white went off in her head before giving way to black.

When Louise awoke, she first noticed that it was dark. She was squashed into a small space with barely enough room to move and when she tried to climb to her feet, she found that her wrists were tied tightly behind her and her ankles were also bound. When her tongue picked up the taste of cloth, she realised that she had been gagged too.

' _Now what?'_ Louise thought in resignation, leaning against the wall behind her. She appeared to be in a small closet of some sort and, considering that it had been 'Becky' who had knocked her out, she hazarded a guess that she was in Becky's house. But why had the shifter brought her here? Why not take her to the sewer, where it was hiding out?

From outside the closet, she could hear muffled voices. She recognised one as Becky's and, to her horror, she realised that the other one belonged to Sam (though she was also relieved that her baby brother had gotten free). She tried to shout a warning but all that came out was a muffled 'mph!'

So that was why she'd been brought here. If the shifter was going to kill them all and it was wearing Becky's shape then it would be a lot more convenient to keep her here rather than go all the way back to the sewer to fetch her and risk Sam escaping. But where was Dean?

Louise winced when she heard a dull thud of glass and she strained her ears for another sound but heard nothing, so she groaned and leaned back against the wall. The silence was even worse than the sounds of fighting. At least with fighting, she knew that Sam was alive. With the silence, she didn't know whether Sam was dead or not!

' _For your sake, you son of a bitch, Sammy had better be alive!'_ Louise thought furiously.

The silence was eventually broken by footsteps approaching her closet. Louise stiffened, ready to fight back against the shifter, and when the door opened to reveal Dean she didn't know whether to be relieved or horrified. A quick check let her know that it was the latter.

"Hey there, Lou," he chuckled. "C'mon, Time for walkies."

He bent down to untie Louise's ankles and Louise took the chance. She lashed out, kicking the shifter in the face, and she tried to stagger to her feet and make a run for it but her bound hands made that action difficult. The next moment, the shifter was gripping her by her long, dark hair and yanking her to her feet, his face twisted with rage.

"You bitch!" he hissed. Louise shouted an insult back through her gag and tried to wriggle free but the shifter had too tight a grip on her hair and simply pulled hard. Louise felt her eyes begin to tear in pain but she didn't give up her struggles. She couldn't go quietly to her death!

"Oh, will you give it a rest?" the shifter groaned. He drew back his fist and punched Louise in the face and while Louise blinked rapidly and struggled to stay conscious through the pain, the shifter dragged her into the living room. Louise sucked in a breath when she saw Sam lying on the floor next to the pool table, his hands bound in front of him, and Sam's eyes widened almost comically.

"Louise?" he exclaimed.

"The junk in my trunk, I swear," the shifter chuckled. "Say hello, Lou."

Louise felt the shifter pull the gag out of her mouth. She decided to borrow from her older brother's very extensive vocabulary.

"Bite me."

Sam snorted. The shifter pulled even harder on Louise's hair and then threw her to the ground. Louise instinctively tried to extend her arms to break her fall but her hands were tied behind her and so she crashed into the ground painfully, the breath being forced out of her lungs.

"Are you okay, Lou?" Sam said immediately.

"Been better, Sammy," Louise wheezed as the shifter grabbed her and turned her over. He arranged them so that it looked like Sam was trying to protect her.

"How touching," the shifter remarked, going to pour himself a glass of whiskey. "The sweet younger brother trying to protect his delicate cousin from their big bad brother. I must say, though, I'll be sorry to lose this skin. Dean's got a lot of good qualities." He took a drink and then picked the knife up and stabbed it into the pool table. Sam and Louise exchanged looks and nodded. Only one of them would get to use the knife to free themselves and it was better that Sam did; Dean knew all of Louise's moves, while Sam's time at Stanford away from them might now prove to their advantage.

"Now," Louise whispered. Sam lashed out and kicked the shifter and took advantage of his brief surprise to jump up and use the knife to saw at the ropes tying his wrists together. Sam and the shifter grappled and Louise tried to free her hands but groaned in frustration when she couldn't. Why couldn't her hands have been bound in front of her? It was always easier to free her hands when they were tied in front! She heard a crash in the next room and winced.

"If you're pushing my baby brother around then there'll be hell to pay!" she bellowed. The front door suddenly banged open and Louise nearly laughed in relief when she saw that it was Dean, with Becky behind him.

"Hey!" Dean shouted into the next room. There was a bang and two gunshots and then dead silence.

"Sam!" Becky cried. After a moment, Dean staggered out of the next room and grinned weakly at Louise.

"Where've you been, Lou?" he said, bending down to untie Louise.

"Getting my ass kicked," Louise said dryly, accepting his helping hand. "Nice timing, Dean. Perfect hero's entrance."

Dean smirked.

"What can I say?" he shrugged. "I'm just awesome like that." He winked and opened his mouth again.

"No!" Louise said. "You're not Batman!"

Dean deflated, looking dejected. Louise couldn't help but burst out laughing and hug Dean, punching him on the shoulder to add enough 'manliness' so that he wouldn't push her away.

"Okay, fine," she said. "You're Batman."

-LW-

"So, Lou, what have we learned from this?" Dean said mockingly as they packed their weapons into the Impala, while Sam said his goodbyes to Becky.

"That we're a completely fucked up family?" Louise said brightly. Dean rolled his eyes.

"That's nothing new," he said.

"That you make an extremely good psychopath?"

"We already knew that too. Though I look terrible in orange."

"That you should never be allowed anywhere near a sharp object again?"

"Fucking hell, Louise!"

"What do you want me to say, Dean? That we're a completely messed up family with a tonne of issues and how Sammy was more like our son than our brother at times?" Sam had told Louise everything that the shifter had told him and she had been beyond pissed. "That shifter shouldn't have stuck his ugly nose into our business but he did and now we have to deal with all the crap he brought up!"

"No, we don't!"

"We  _do_ , Dean! Sam told me everything he said and you're  _not_  a useless freak! I know you think that about yourself and you're  _wrong_ , Dean, and it  _kills_  me that you think like that!"

Dean just gave an exaggerated sigh, pissing Louise off since this was his way of avoiding difficult subjects, and he pulled out a map – which, of course, only resulted in the two of them bickering over whether to go north or south. Louise knew that he was trying to distract her from the previous topic but she enjoyed fighting with Dean over something like this, even if he was infuriating her, and so she played along.

"Keep in touch!" Becky called. Louise realised that Sam was approaching them, having finished his conversation with Becky, and Dean took the chance to snatch the map away from her. She shot him a bitchface and got into the backseat of the Impala – apparently Sam had 'brother privileges', despite the fact that Louise had claimed shotgun when John was gone ever since forever.

"What happened to Zack?" Louise said, shooting an irritated look at Dean and leaning over the front seat to point at a town somewhere in Minnesota.

"Cops are blaming this Dean Winchester guy for Emily's murder," Sam smirked. "They found the murder weapon in the guy's lair and Zack's clothes stained with her blood. Now they're thinking that the surveillance tape was tampered with."

Louise sniggered. Dean rolled his eyes and Louise took the chance to snatch the map away from him, giving him a smug smile.

"Too bad that we've gotta leave, really," Dean said as they left St Louis. "Not every day you miss your own funeral."

Sam and Louise just snorted.


	2. Don't Fear the Reaper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out that all those weird people Louise could see ARE real and she's not just going batshit crazy (not that that's really reassuring when Dean nearly dies AGAIN).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I was tempted to cover 'Home', since that one was pretty big in terms of personal impact on the Winchesters, but nothing new really happens so I decided to give it a miss. So now we skip all the way to 'Faith' and then 'Shadow', where the real changes start.
> 
> And don't get used to updates this frequent. I'll only update a chapter when I have another one done and I'm up to writing chapter 36, which is halfway through S2.

**Chapter 2: Don't Fear the Reaper**

 

' _Thanks, Dad,'_  Louise thought angrily as she and Dean left after questioning the faith healer and his wife, Roy and Sue Ann Le Grange, about Roy's powers; Roy got them after suffering from cancer, when he was miraculously healed and gained healing powers even though he remained blind, and now whenever Roy healed somebody someone else seemed to die at the exact same time.  _'Nice to know we can count on you to show up when your son nearly dies!'_

"That was a big bucket of nothing," Dean muttered, moving aside to let Louise out of the house. Louise just shrugged, still caught up in her swirling thoughts, and she nearly ran into a young blonde woman outside: Layla, who they had met at the service. Her mother was with her and was absolutely pissed at Dean.

Louise felt bad for Layla, who had an incurable brain tumour that only gave her six months to live, and she silently promised to pray for her. She wasn't sure whether she was religious or not. Dean always scoffed at faith and religion and Sam was the complete opposite but Louise supposed that, even if she did pray irregularly and didn't exactly live by the Bible, she did believe that God and angels were out there somewhere. She had to, or else all the negativity in the world would just overwhelm her in a big cloud of hopelessness. She just wondered why they would let Layla suffer like this.

"I'm really sorry," Louise said sadly. "I'll pray for you and – I really hope that you get chosen next time, Layla."

"Thanks," Layla said quietly.

"That's not good enough!" Mrs Rourke said angrily. She turned to Dean. "Why do you deserve to live more than my daughter?"

"Excuse me?" Louise snapped. "I am really, really sorry for Layla and if I could do something, I would. But why should your daughter deserve to live more than my brother?"

"Because she's my  _daughter_!"

"Well, he's my  _brother_! You might not want Layla to die but I don't want Dean to die!"

"Louise, c'mon," Dean murmured, pulling his fuming sister away before she could say something that she would really regret.

After some research, the three of them found that every time someone was healed, someone else did die – of the exact same cause. Concluding that Roy was trading one life for another, they discovered that it was a reaper who was trading these lives and vowed to stop him, though Dean wouldn't let go of the fact that the guy, Marshall, had died to save him.

"Dean, let it go," Louise snapped, still pissed off from Mrs Rourke. "If you hadn't been healed then Marshall would've died to heal someone else and I'm sorry but I'd rather have you alive rather than someone else."

"Don't say that, Lou!" Dean said. "I'm alive because Le Grange killed someone else! I should have died!"

"Don't!" Louise hissed. "Dean, don't you  _ever_  say that! You're our brother and I'm sorry if this makes me the most selfish bitch in the world but I don't care who dies so long as you and Sammy are alive! Hell, I'd sell my fucking  _soul_  if it meant keeping you alive!"

She stormed out of the motel, climbed up onto the roof of the Impala and lay there, staring up at the sky and struggling not to cry because she was a tough woman! An hour later, Sam and Dean came to retrieve her.

"I should kill you for sitting on Baby, you know," Dean informed her. Louise didn't respond. "Look, Lou…did you mean what you said back there?"

"Yes," Louise said stuffily, wiping her nose with her sleeve and mentally apologising to her mom for defacing her jacket. "You and Sam are all I have left in this godforsaken world and if that means that people have to die to keep either of you alive then I'll feel bad but I wouldn't choose to keep them alive over you."

"Louise, don't say that," Sam said.

"Do you know how crap that makes us feel?" Dean added.

"It's the truth!" Louise snapped, sitting up. "Dean, if our positions were reversed and Sam or I were the ones about to die, you can't tell me that you wouldn't do the same thing."

"I wouldn't!" Dean said quickly. Louise glared at him and Sam raised an eyebrow. "Alright, I would. But you and Sammy are my little brother and sister. It's my job to protect you."

"And how are you supposed to do that if you're dead?" Louise countered. "Look, I know you're our big brother and you have to protect us – even if it's as much my job to protect Sammy as it is yours – but don't think that there isn't  _anything_  Sam and I wouldn't do to protect you. It goes both ways, asshole."

"Fine," Dean smirked. "If you insist, bitch. Now quit with the chick flick moment and get off my car before I do kill you."

Rolling her eyes, Louise slipped off the roof of the Impala. Dean pulled her and Sam into a headlock and hauled them away towards their motel room, Louise shrieking with laughter and trying to wriggle free and Sam grinning under Dean's other arm.

"Let me go, you jerk!" he shouted.

After their rare moment of acting like a happy little apple pie family, Sam, Dean and Louise returned to researching reapers which, from all of the lore they found, were collectors of souls that could stop time and were only visible if they were coming for you. Louise was violently thrown back into memories of times when they had arrived too late to stop a monster from killing someone and there had already been somebody there; usually sombre people dressed in dark mortician's outfits.

"You're imagining things, Lou," John had said tersely when she'd brought it up the first time, back when she was eight. Nobody else seemed to be able to see these weird people, so Louise had just written them off as hallucinations and stopped worrying about them (though she did often stumble across the same person a few times. More often than not, they looked at her as though she was a familiar acquaintance, though she supposed that she was technically an acquaintance if she'd met them a few times before). They weren't hurting her so she didn't have to worry. But what if…what if those people had been reapers? What if she'd been seeing the collectors of the souls they'd failed to save? That thought didn't make her feel any better.

"Lou!" Sam said. Louise blinked and started, seeing Sam and Dean staring at her. "Are you even listening?"

"What? Oh, sorry. I was just…somewhere else."

"I swear, you're as bad as Dean," Sam muttered. "Now I have to explain all over again."

"Terribly sorry to inconvenience you, Sammy. Do carry on. My wayward son."

"Stop referencing that damn song whenever you say that!" Dean groaned.

"I'm sorry that you can't appreciate good music, Dean!"

"I do appreciate it! It's a classic! But when you bring it up every damn time –"

"'Carry On Wayward Son' is the best song!"

"Says the chick who's into emo rock where the guys wear eyeliner and sing about death and depression! Who were they again? My Erection –"

"My Chemical Romance! And they sing about  _life_! None of this happy flowers and rainbows and lovey-dovey stuff! They keep it real because real life is about death and suffering! And so help me, if you say a  _word_  against Panic! At the Disco or Fall Out Boy –"

"Shut up!" Sam snapped, shooting Louise and Dean a bitchface – of all of them, he pulled those faces off the best. "Now, am I allowed to continue or do you two want to keep arguing about crappy music?"

"My music isn't crappy!" Dean and Louise protested together. Sam just smirked and outlined his theory that Roy was controlling the reaper through his cross, which was on a tarot card of his.

"Tarot dates back to the early Christian era, when some priests were still using magic," he explained. "A few of them fell into some pretty dark stuff, like necromancy. But if Roy is controlling the reaper then one day he won't like what happens. It's like putting a dog leash on a great white shark."

Dean proposed killing Roy but Sam and Louise hurriedly shot that idea down and decided to try and break Roy's spell over the reaper. But Dean found that Sue Ann was the one controlling the reaper – using a very dark binding spell to keep it away from Roy and help him cheat death at first, and now to kill those she found immoral – and Roy truly believed that he could heal people.

Once at the private session that night, Sam went to destroy the altar and take down Sue Ann, while Dean and Louise went to try and stop the session. Suddenly, the lights around them flickered out one by one. Louise jumped and when Dean sucked in a breath, she followed his line of sight and felt horror curl in her gut when she saw that a creepy man with a dark suit and the wrinkliest face she'd ever seen was staring right at Dean.

"Reaper!" she hissed at the same time as Dean. They exchanged startled looks and in that split second, the reaper began to advance on Dean. Louise's stomach dropped. Sue Ann was targeting her brother!

"Run, Dean!" she cried. However, the reaper appeared beside Dean in the blink of an eye and laid a hand on Dean's head. Dean suddenly started convulsing, his eyes glazing over, and Louise screamed when he sank to his knees.

"Leave my brother alone, you monster!" she shouted. The reaper peered at her almost curiously but ignored her, so she stepped forward and took a swing at the reaper. But before her fist could make contact with it, it disappeared. Dean fell to the ground, gasping but not seizing up as he was before.

"Dean!" Louise kneeled down next to her coughing, panting brother. Dean grinned up at her weakly.

"Quit worrying so much, bitch," he said.

"Oh, shut up, asshole!" Louise snapped, slapping him but with a wide grin on her face. "Also, I so told you that I wasn't imagining those creepy people I kept seeing."


	3. The Girl With Two Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sucks to be Meg Masters and whatshisname. Also sucks to be the Winchesters (but when doesn't it?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I'm currently trying to rewrite some of S2 because I wasn't happy at how close to canon it turned out to be but I make no promises. It's mostly character-driven anyway so I hope that makes up for lack of plot change.
> 
> Also, fair warning: if I can make a chapter title out of a song reference, I will. My Chemical Romance is the biggest target but I do have plenty of other songs up my sleeve. And if someone thinks that a song would suit a non-song title, just tell me and I'll change it if I agree.

**Chapter 3. The Girl With Two Faces**

Louise was terrified. Because yes, there was something off about Meg Masters, the girl that Sam had met the other month, and anyone could see that. But nobody else could see the pure evil coursing throughout Meg's body; the dark smoke that coiled around inside the petite girl with the short blonde hair. Even being in the same room – or, technically, bar – as Meg was setting Louise on edge. And then Sam had to go and talk to her.

"This is my brother, Dean, and my sister, Louise," he said. Meg turned her eyes to Louise, who froze when she felt the sliminess almost brushing up against her. The smoke wasn't going anywhere but Louise could still sense its evil presence and it was making her sick to her stomach.

"Lou!" Dean elbowed Louise. "You paying attention?"

Louise knew that Dean also suspected something off about Meg and was making sure that her head was in the game but he couldn't feel or see what she could!

"Sorry," she croaked. "I just – I don't feel well. Might be coming down with something."

"Oh, that sucks. I came down with a stomach bug just the other month and it was the  _worst_." Meg was all sympathy and smiles but this quickly soured when she began to tear into Dean and Louise for 'oppressing their brother' and 'dragging him all over God's green earth without any consideration for what he wants'. Louise wasn't listening; she was just trying to avoid puking her guts up while attempting to control her breathing.

' _Oh, God!'_ Louise thought.  _'What's wrong with me? Is it Meg? What's wrong with her?'_

"I'm sorry, I need some air!" she blurted out. "Nice meeting you, Meg." It really wasn't but Louise had to get out of there. "See you two outside!"

Louise made a beeline for the bar entrance. Once she was outside, her nausea seemed to settle down and she leaned against the side of the building, panting and gagging and covered in a thin sheen of sweat.

"What's wrong, Lou?" Louise felt strong hands grip her face and she looked up to see Dean, a concerned look on his face. Sam was right next to him, looking equally as worried.

"Not – not here," she gasped. "Not safe."

To their credit, Sam and Dean didn't argue but instead shepherded Louise back to the Impala. Louise wanted to protest that she could walk but, if she was honest, it was nice to have Dean gripping her caringly and Sam sliding into the backseat with her to hold her close. She was the middle child but sometimes, it felt nice to be treated like the baby girl. That didn't happen too often nowadays and when it did, it was just Dean being unreasonably overprotective.

-LW-

"Meg's  _what_?" Dean blinked.

"I don't know!" Louise threw her hands up. "Hell, I was probably imagining it! But I felt so sick and there was something black and smoky in Meg and she looked  _wrong_! There's something evil about her!"

"How about you make some calls?" a pale Sam suggested. "Find out about anything black and smoky and about that symbol we found in Meredith's apartment – Meg might be connected. Dean can see if there really is a Meg Masters from Andover, Massachusetts."

"What about you, Sammy?" Louise took a swig from her water bottle, her hands still trembling. She'd never felt anything like that presence before!

"I'm going to watch Meg," Sam announced. Louise choked on her water.

"Nice," Dean said, pounding Louise on the back. "Got a thing for evil bitches, do you?"

"Ew! No!" Sam looked disgusted. "But one of us should keep an eye on her!"

"Why?" Louise wheezed. "We know there's something up with her. We should stay well away from her."

"But –"

"What if she realises you're there, Sam? If she's up to something then we don't wanna back her into a corner. We have to stay the hell away from her until we know what's up."

"Fine." Sam didn't look too happy but Louise didn't care. She was  _not_  letting her baby brother anywhere near that dark presence!

"You call around about the symbol, Sam. I'll see about what Meg could be and Dean can look into whether she's really Meg Masters or not."

Tasks delegated, the trio picked up their technology and began to make inquiries. Louise stared down at her phone for a moment, trying to pluck up the courage, before dialling a certain number and holding the phone to her ear.

"Bobby Singer," a familiar rough voice grunted. Louise swallowed.

"Bobby?" she said. There was silence on the other end.

"What the hell d'you think you're doin', callin' me now?" Louise's stomach sank. She'd hoped that Bobby didn't hate them too much after chasing them off his property last time they'd visited with John! "Ya don't drop in and then ya call me back up and expect me to help ya again?"

"Sorry!" Louise said quickly, her heart hammering. "I don't wanna bother you, Bobby! I just need –"

"Ah, can it," Bobby grumbled. "I'm just messin' with ya. How've ya been, Lou?"

Louise laughed shakily.

"You really don't hate us?" she said. "'Cause last time we were there, you said – and I quote – 'Get the hell off my property before I blast ya so full of rock salt ya crap margaritas'."

"That was aimed at yer dad," Bobby said. "John's got that effect on everyone."

Despite herself, Louise laughed.

"Now, tell me what's up, girl. I haven't heard ya this shaken since John nearly spilled his guts out all over my floor."

Louise explained everything she'd seen and felt about Meg. Bobby was quiet again.

"And ya say this smoke was  _inside_  the girl?" he said.

"Yeah," Louise nodded. "And it felt different to other monsters. Like, with werewolves and shifters, I can feel this darkness in them but it's, y'know…a part of them. This was different. I could actually  _see_  it. It was like the smoke was…I dunno…controlling her. Either that or she's just pure evil."

"Balls," Bobby cursed quietly.

"Bobby?"

"Ya gotta get outta there, Lou. Sounds to me like a demon."

Louise paled. She'd never encountered a demon before but she'd heard plenty of horror stories about them!

"A demon?" she whispered.

"Yes. If I were you, I'd take yer brothers and run."

"But – two people were killed – we can't leave –"

"Ya can't kill a demon, Lou. Ya can exorcise it – if ya can trap it or get it to stand still long enough – but ya can't kill 'em. Trust me, the only thing that'll happen if ya stick around is death."

"But the people…" Louise protested. As much as she wanted to do what Bobby said and turn tail and run, they had to stop anyone else from dying!

"Listen to me, Louise. There's been an increase in demon activity. Normally, there's three or four cases a year. Ya wanna know how many I've heard of this year? Over fifteen."

Louise gulped.

"Something's happenin', Lou. Somethin' big. And ya don't wanna be in the middle of it. Not now. So grab Sam and Dean and get the hell outta there."

Louise bit her lip.

"I know it's not in yer nature to run, Lou. You lot are noble idjits and ya gotta save everyone. But trust me. Ya don't wanna mess with a demon when yer not prepared. What would you do if that demon got her hands on Sam and Dean?"

And that, along with the strangely pained tone of Bobby's voice, was what sealed the deal for Louise. She sighed.

"We'll get out of here," she promised. "Can we –"

"My door's always open, Lou," Bobby said. "Just get yer asses here, okay?"

"Okay. See ya."

Louise hung up and turned to face her brothers, who were staring at her with equally pale faces.

"Demon?" Sam said quietly. "Bobby said demon?"

"Yeah," Louise nodded. "What did you guys find out?"

"Well," Dean said with a forced air of his usual bravado, "turns out there  _is_  a Meg Masters from Andover, Massachusetts. Matching pictures and everything. So if it is a demon then…well, poor Meg."

"And I just got off the phone from Caleb," Sam added. "He gave me lots of information on the symbol. It's Zoroastrian – super, super old. Like 2000 BC old. It's a Daeva sigil."

"Daeva sigil?" Dean and Louise said blankly.

"A sigil for Daevas," Sam said, his voice dripping with an unspoken 'duh'.

"Funnily enough, we got that much," Dean said. "What the hell are Daevas?"

"Zoroastrian shadow demons," Sam replied. "They're more like demonic pit bulls than anything else. And the thing is, they have to be summoned. So someone has to be controlling it. And that's a risk in itself, since they tend to turn on the person controlling them. They haven't been seen in millennia, so whoever's summoning them knows their stuff."

"A possessed girl and ancient shadow demons?" Louise said. "Bobby's right. We're getting the hell outta here."

"What?" Dean said as Louise stood up and turned to her duffle bag. "Since when do we run from a hunt?"

"Since we're in over our heads!" Louise said. "We can't kill demons and even if we could trap this one, we don't know any exorcisms!"

"Dad's journal! Sam and I took care of that disaster demon on the plane while you were off gallivanting with Caleb on that ghoul hunt!"

"We still can't trap her! What, are we just gonna ask her nicely to stand there while we exorcise her? We've never faced demons before, Dean, apart from that disaster demon, and you just got really lucky! Dad faced two in his life and did he ever come back from them any better than dead on his feet?"

"So you're saying we turn tail and run?"

"We can't do anything to help these people, Dean! If we rush in, we're probably going to get ourselves killed as well! Werewolves, shifters, ghosts – we know how to kill them! We can't kill a demon!"

Louise and Dean glared at each other, panting heavily with flushed faces. Sam stood a little way away, watching their confrontation with wide eyes. Louise took a deep breath and pulled out her trump card.

"Say we do go after the demon," she said quietly. "And we fail. I know you don't care about yourself – which is something I really don't understand – but what if she gets Sammy? What do you think she'll do?"

Dean was rigid as he stared between her and Sam.

"I'm right here," Sam said.

"Shut your face!" Louise said. "You know that Bobby and I are right, Dean. Sam's run into her twice before and you know I don't believe in coincidences, so I say we get the hell out while we still can."

Louise could see the battle on her brother's face; his internal war between his need to help these people and his ingrained instinct to protect Sam at all costs. And if this demon was stalking Sam then she was certain that the latter would win.

"Fine," Dean forced out. "Pack your stuff and let's hit the road before she realises we're gone."

Louise grinned in relief and stuffed clothes into her bag. It only took them a few minutes to pack their things and then Dean switched off the light and closed the room door behind them. The three of them trudged in silence through the motel halls and out to the Impala. They had nearly made it to the car when Louise stiffened, a familiar, slimy feeling brushing up against her.

"I think there's something stuck to my shoe," she hissed. Without pausing to look around, Sam and Dean immediately threw their bags into the trunk of the Impala. Just as they were about to pull out weapons, Louise felt an invisible force grip her and pull her away from her brothers and she screamed.

"Louise!" Sam and Dean shouted. Louise slammed into the brick wall nearby and remained pinned, her head spinning and throbbing and her nauseous feeling intensifying.

"Demon! Run!" she yelled. But Sam and Dean ignored her. Just as they reached her, the invisible force struck again and sent them hurtling away in opposite directions. Sam crashed to the ground and didn't move, while Dean was smashed into the Impala but remained conscious. As Louise's vision swam, the sound of footsteps reached her ears and she forced her head up to see a smirking Meg with pitch black eyes. Louise could also see the pure darkness swirling around in her and she had to fight the urge to hurl.

"I'm hurt, boys," Meg said, her voice somehow both chirpy and dangerously evil. "Were you really going to leave without saying goodbye?"

She crouched down next to an unconscious Sam and ran a hand through his hair.

"Get your hands off him, you bitch!" Dean snarled. Meg straightened up, a hurt look on her face.

"That wasn't very nice," she pouted. "You should learn better manners, Dean." She thrust out her hand and Dean's head slammed into the wall. As Louise screamed, he slumped over and Meg freed him from his invisible bonds to let him crumple on the ground.

"Leave them alone!" Louise screeched. She wondered why nobody heard them and came to help but at the same time, she was glad that everybody stayed away; if they came, she was certain that Meg would kill them.

"You can sense me," Meg said curiously, approaching Louise and staring at her. "I heard your silly codeword just before and I saw you freak out as soon as I got here. And earlier, in the bar, you said you felt sick. Can you see me?"

Louise struggled not to stare at the darkness inside the blonde but she couldn't help it.

"Y-Yeah," she replied, trying even harder not to puke her guts up at the nauseating evil radiating from Meg. "I can see your ugly mug. You make me sick to my stomach."

Meg raised her eyebrows.

"Now, now," she tutted. "There's no need for rudeness. I asked a simple question."

Shaking her head, Meg turned around and approached Sam. With a wave of her hand, Dean's body came flying over and Meg gripped Louise's brothers by their upper arms and straightened up.

"Since we're such good friends, I'd like to extend you an invitation to come and stay," the blonde said with a sickly sweet smile. "It's non-refusable, of course. My brother Tom will escort you there."

Louise felt the arrival of another vomit-inducing presence as a burly, dark-haired man appeared just beside her. The demon smiled at her, though nothing in it was nice, and he gripped her upper arm tightly. Louise felt the invisible force holding her 'shift' from Meg to Tom, if that was a way of describing it, and Tom gave her a very ugly smile.

"Hold on tight, sweetheart," he said. That was the last thing he said before the world began to spin around Louise and her surroundings, including the Impala, melted away.


	4. Failure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An escape attempt is made but not everything goes to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> As of now, this fic is complete with 42 chapters. But don't worry! There will be a sequel! It just felt right to end it where I did :) So updates should be more frequent!

**Chapter 4. Failure**

 

Demons fucking sucked. As if the mere presence of the demons wasn't making her feel sick enough, demonic teleportation actually made Louise dry heave when they landed in a dark room. Tom just smirked at her as she gagged and struggled to regain her balance and then he grabbed her by the upper arms and hauled her away.

"Let go of me!" Louise snapped, trying to get away from Tom and the sickening darkness inside his body. She punched him in the face but, undeterred, Tom simply punched her back harder. While she was dazed, he picked her up, hauled her over his shoulder and carried her away. Louise tried to fight back again but her world was still spinning from the teleportation and the punch and all she could do was moan piteously and try not to be sick.

By the time Louise managed to get her bearings, Tom had carried her into a larger room and dumped her on the ground, where she slumped against a pillar. Louise caught sight of Dean tied up across from her and the sight of Meg binding Sam to another pillar distracted her long enough for Tom to quickly lash her to the pillar behind her without her putting up a fight. Once he moved away, Louise tugged at her knots futilely but to no avail, though she didn't give up.

"So." Meg sauntered over to Louise, a wide smile on her face. "How about we have a little chat, Louise? A friendly conversation between two best friends?"

"I'd rather not," Louise spat as Meg kneeled down, straddling her legs. Louise tried to buck the demon off but Meg's smile just widened and she sank down fully on top of Louise's legs, pinning them to the floor.

"But I thought we were besties!" Meg said mock-sadly. Louise looked away, stiff-jawed, unable to look at the horrendous demon inside the blonde's body but Meg just reached out to caress her cheek and force Louise to look back at her.

"Fine," Louise bit out. "What do you want to talk about?"

"There we go!" Meg trilled, clapping her hands. "First off…" She brushed a lock of Louise's dark hair behind the brunette's ear. "Where'd a girl like you get such interesting powers?"

Louise remained silent. In response, Tom kicked her in the side.

"I dunno," Louise wheezed. "Mutant gene? Radioactive spider bite?"

"Cute," Meg said. "You know what I think, Louise? I think you're psychic. And a strong one at that – not a lot of psychics can actually see a demon's true form. Mostly, they're just limited to sensing."

"Strong psychic like you could be a lotta help to us," Tom chuckled. His smoke seemed to dance with glee, making Louise feel even sicker.

"Who says I'd ever help you?" she glared.

"Well, there are several ways we can go," Meg said, patting Louise's cheek. "We could threaten the lives of your brothers. But, as much fun as that would be, there's always a chance that they'll escape. Not to mention Sammy and his –"

"Meg," Tom growled warningly.

"What?" Louise was immediately alert. "Sam's what?"

"Never you mind," Meg smiled, patting Louise on the head condescendingly. "I bet you're just dying to hear the other option anyway!"

"Not really," Louise muttered.

"One of us gets back the security deposit on our meat suit and finds a new home." Meg leaned in so close that her mouth was just inches from Louise's. Her breath reeked of fire and sulfur and Louise tried desperately not to throw up. "You."

Louise stiffened in horror. Meg gave her another sweet smile and heaved herself back up to her feet.

"Of course, we have to wait for orders," the blonde said. "So you're safe for now, Lou."

"Don't call me that," Louise snarled. "Only my family can call me that and you're  _not_  family."

Louise hated feeling like this. When anyone else caught her, she was smart-mouthed and didn't let them push her around and fought back! But now? Now she was just a weak damsel in distress, using all of her energy to avoid being overwhelmed by the waves of disgusting evil radiating from Meg and Tom!

The sound of Dean groaning as he came around instantly caught their attention. Meg smiled at Louise one more time and crossed over to Dean and Louise took the chance to try and fish her knife out of her pocket to free herself. Tom sat down next to Louise and gave her a creepy grin.

"Having fun, sweetheart?" he said.

"Eat me," Louise spat, finally freeing her knife. Tom's grin just widened and he reached out and ran a hand down her cheek. Louise stiffened in disgust.

"I could," he said almost musingly. "It's not like I haven't done it before. I just didn't know you were that kinky."

Louise felt a wave of revulsion surge through her and nearly make her hurl then and there, something that always happened at the thought of sex. Louise didn't know what it was about her or why she was so broken but whenever she imagined herself in any kind of sexual situation, it was a surefire way to bring her guts up straight away.

"Only for you, babe," she snarled, fighting back her intensifying nausea and instead focusing on sawing at her bonds.

"Sammy! You're awake!" Meg exclaimed mock-happily. Louise immediately strained her neck to try and catch sight of Sam around Tom's body. "You hurt my feelings when you tried to leave! We hadn't even had a chance to hook up yet!"

"Sorry," Sam said in his 'bitchy' tone, as Louise described it. "You're a bit too evil for me. I don't usually date demons."

Meg chuckled before leaning in and planting a kiss on Sam's lips. Louise gagged, both at the sight of the demon kissing her baby brother and at the stronger waves of evil that were pouring off Meg at her delight.

"Why?" Louise said, shooting a poisonous look at Meg. "Why'd you come after us?"

"I thought that was obvious, Lou," Meg said innocently.

"Good work, you nabbed us!" Dean said mockingly. "Good for you! It's Miller time! But why don't you just kill us?"

"Boy, you two are dumber than I thought," Meg whistled. "You really think this trap's for you guys. Care to have a guess, Sammy?"

There was a moment of silence.

"Dad," Sam said quietly. "It's for Dad, isn't it?"

Louise's eyes widened. Of course! It was so obvious! But why? Was John closing in on what had killed Mary and Cathy? Were the three of them bargaining chips to try and force John into cooperating?

"Can I tell you three a secret?" Meg said. "Your dad  _is_  in town."

Louise exchanged stunned looks with Sam and Dean. Meg had to be lying! If John was in town then he would contact them! Wouldn't he?

"And Johnny boy lets his guard down around his boys and his baby girl," Meg continued. "He makes mistakes and tries to protect them. So he's going to run in to save you three and then everybody gets to die a slow, painful, extremely messy death. Everybody wins!"

Louise swallowed.

"You don't have much to say," she said hoarsely to Tom to try and distract herself from her racing thoughts. Her ropes were almost broken – just a few more minutes…

"Unlike my sister, I don't like the sound of my own voice so much," Tom snorted derisively. Louise raised her eyebrows.

"A villain that doesn't like to hear himself monologue?" she said dryly, ignoring the sound of Meg talking to Sam and Dean. "Pull the other one."

"I don't see the point," Tom shrugged. "Meg's the favourite. She gets all the fun stuff so she's got more to monologue about. I just get saddled with covering her ass and doing all the boring behind the scenes stuff while she goes and kills people and has fun. I can't even argue or Father flips his shit and a demon losing it isn't pretty."

"Ouch," Louise winced. Wait, was she sympathising with a  _demon_? "I get that, man. All Dad ever told us was take care of Sam and protect Sam and make sure that Sam had what he needed. And then he left and Dad still expected me and Dean to follow his orders and handle all the shit stuff while he took down the monsters. We were in our twenties and he still treated us like children but heaven forbid we ever rebel and think for ourselves!"

They fell silent. Louise mentally cheered when her bonds fell away.

"Please tell me I didn't just vent to a demon whose presence makes me want to hurl," she groaned.

"Hey, I vented to a pathetic human," Tom shrugged. "I'll keep your secret if you keep mine."

"Done."

A sudden cry from Meg snapped Louise out of her semi-trance and she saw Sam leap to his feet. She smirked at Tom.

"Sorry, buddy." She kicked Tom in the face and rolled away, crossing over to Dean to free him.

"Get them!" Meg shrieked at Tom. Dean's bonds finally gave and Louise hauled her older brother to her feet.

"Come on!" she screamed. She, Sam and Dean sprinted for the exit of the room but Meg and Tom had recovered and, with a wave of their hands, the Winchesters tripped and landed in a huge pile. They quickly clambered to their feet, backing away from the menacing demons.

"Go!" Dean snapped.

"What?" Sam and Louise exclaimed together. "Dean, we can't –"

"My job's to protect you two! Lou, take care of Sammy! You got that?"

"But Dean –"

"Go!" Dean turned and shoved his brother and sister out of the room, just as Meg waved a hand to slam the door shut.

"Dean!" Sam and Louise yelled. Filled with adrenaline, Louise launched herself at the door and tried to kick it in but it just groaned and creaked. Another kick and Louise felt the wood begin to splinter. Just as she drew back for a third kick, Louise felt the demons' slimy presences disappear.

"No!" she shrieked. She attacked the door with everything she had, finally caving it in, and she and Sam forced themselves through the door and back into the room. Louise's stomach dropped when the sight before her confirmed what she'd just sensed. The demons were gone. And they had Dean with them!

"DEAN!"


	5. Confrontations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and John have a huge fight (but what's new, really?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I don't hate John. My other fic, 'As Time Goes By', is proof of that. I feel that he's a good man who made bad choices but did the best he could with his situation, hence why I will never write an abusive, 'cranked to 11' John. But this is 2006, not 1992 like in ATGB, and John's had more time to perfect being an ass, especially with his row with Sam over college. Not to mention that he did canonically come around and realise that his sons were more important but only after they nearly died in a car crash, and that was after their confrontation with Azazel. At this point, I feel that his mind is still clouded with revenge.
> 
> Thanks to Renie for your comment, which is my first on this story :)

**Chapter 5. Confrontations**

"Pick up, damn you!" Louise screamed. Sam was in the gas station, paying for their gas and snacks, and she had tried to call John but of course he wasn't answering! Even though she knew it was futile, Louise dialled his number again but, sure enough, got voicemail.

"Pick up your fucking phone, Dad!" Louise bellowed at the phone. "Dean's been caught by demons who could be doing God knows what to him and all you care about is playing a game of Tom and Jerry! Well, guess what? Dean's your son, so it's your job to get your ass over here and help us rescue him!"

Louise violently hung up and shoved her phone into her pocket. She turned around to see an alarmed Sam, his arms full of snacks.

"Lou –"

"Get in the car, Sam," Louise said brusquely. She opened the driver's door of the Impala and slid into her seat, Sam doing the same with shotgun after dumping their snacks in the back with Louise's leather jacket (which she just couldn't wear after remembering all the times Dean had ribbed her for it) and keeping a granola bar for himself.

"Louise," Sam said as Louise started up the car. "Can we –"

"Sorry, Sammy. Can't hear ya." Louise turned AC/DC up full blast – playing anything except mullet rock was an insult to Dean's memory. Dean's  _memory_? When had she started thinking of Dean in the past tense? Choking back a sob, Louise's hands tightened around the steering wheel and she started to quietly sing the lyrics to 'Highway to Hell', trying desperately to think about anything but her older brother, who was a captive of demons.

" _I'm on the highway to hell, on highway to hell, highway to hell, I'm on the highway to hell! Don't stop me_!"

-LW-

As the sun began to sink below the horizon, the Impala cruised into a salvage yard full of old cars and car parts. Louise was mildly surprised and curious when she saw an old, beat-up truck that appeared to be in perfect working order outside the house and she wondered who'd be there at this time of day; there were only a few people that had 'staying over' privileges, unless it was a real emergency.

"C'mon," she muttered to Sam, killing the engine.

"Louise, can we talk?" Sam said as they got out of the car.

"About what? There's nothing to talk about."

"Like hell there isn't." Sam grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the house to a more secluded place. Once he let go of her, Louise crossed her arms, a very 'Dean-esque' look on her face.

"What is it, Sam? I just wanna go inside and get my ass chewed out by Bobby and then go to bed."

"Bobby wouldn't chew your ass out," Sam said firmly. "It's not your fault, Lou. You warned us and we went to get out of there. The demons just got us first. It's nobody's fault but theirs."

"Uh huh."

"And you're acting weird. Like, not yourself. You're acting like – like –"

"Like who?"

"Like…Dean."

Louise reeled back as though she'd been slapped.

"What?" she hissed.

"It's true! You're listening to his music, you eat pie whenever you can – when you never used to eat it all that much – and –"

"You shut your mouth right now, Sam," Louise spat. "You don't know anything!"

"Don't I?"

"No! Because you fucked off to Stanford for four years! You  _left_  us until Dean and I brought you back so what the hell gives you the right to tell me how I'm acting?"

"Because you're my sister and I still know you!" Sam insisted, clenching his fists. Louise knew that she shouldn't be getting so mad at Sam, since none of this was his fault, but Dean was gone and what the hell was she supposed to do?

"You just keep telling yourself that, Sammy," Louise said mockingly, reaching up to pat Sam on the head. Before he could retort, she turned and stormed back towards the house, Sam following her and not speaking to her. Well, fine. That was how she liked it!

When Louise knocked on the door, nothing happened. The next moment, it opened to reveal a man with greying reddish-brown hair, a scruffy beard, a trucker's cap and grungy clothing.

"Ya took yer time," Bobby Singer commented dryly. "Heard yer car pull up minutes ago."

"Just a little sibling discussion," Louise said stiffly, ignoring the look that Sam sent her. "It's really good to see you, Bobby."

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Bobby. Bobby hugged her back for a moment before stepping away.

"Good to see ya too, Lou," he said. "Hey, Sam. Long time, no see."

"Bobby," Sam said, a small smile on his face. Louise moved aside so that Sam and Bobby could also hug.

"C'mon," Bobby said. "There's someone here to see ya."

Wondering who could want to see them, Louise and Sam followed Bobby through the house and into the living room. There was a figure standing at the window, its back turned to them. Louise frowned, wondering why the person seemed so familiar – until they turned around. Her mouth fell open.

"Dad?" she and Sam whispered in shock. John Winchester gave them a soft smile.

"Hey," he said. All of Louise's anger and resentment at being abandoned for months immediately evaporated and when John began to walk towards her and Sam, she jumped the last few feet and threw her arms around him, breathing in his familiar scent of leather and alcohol. When John patted her on the back, Louise nodded and stepped back so that he could smile at Sam.

"Hi, Sam," he said.

"Hey, Dad," Sam replied in an almost-whisper. Louise was disappointed that they didn't hug but then again, it was their first time seeing each other in four years and their last time together hadn't gone well at all.

"Sorry to hear about Dean," Bobby said, finally speaking up. Louise's jaw set and she looked away from John, not wanting to see the look of disappointment she knew would be in his eyes. "It wasn't yer fault, Lou. Ya tried to get outta there as soon as ya called. Not much can stop a demon."

"I still sensed the demons when they arrived," she muttered. "They didn't even knock me out so I should've fought harder! And I just let Dean push us out and sacrifice himself! It's my fault he's the demons' new plaything! I shouldn't've let him do that! I should've tried harder!"

Louise was nearly shouting by the end of her rant. Feeling tears begin to sting her eyes, she turned away so that nobody would see them and she stiffened when she felt somebody hug her. Realising that it was Sam, she relaxed and returned the hug, though she didn't allow herself to break down into tears. She'd be damned if she showed weakness in front of John!

"Louise," John said. Louise didn't reply. "Look at me. Now."

Louise reluctantly met John's eyes.

"Don't beat yourself up over it," he said. "You tried, you messed up. Instead of dwelling on it, focus on making it right. You got it?"

Well, it was the closest she'd get to an 'it's not your fault' from John, so Louise was willing to take it.

"Okay, Dad," she said.

"What are we going to do about Dean?" Sam piped up. "How are we going to find him? And why did they even want us? Why would they want to trap you, Dad?"

"Are you closing in on what killed Mom and Aunt Mary?" Louise added.

"I'll go get ya two some drinks," Bobby said, turning and heading towards the kitchen. John looked to be debating with himself.

"Yeah," he said. "It's tried to stop me before. It knows I'm closing in on it and that I'm gonna kill it, not just exorcise it."

"What? You can kill it?" Louise said, stunned. "How?"

John just smiled.

"I'm workin' on it," he said. "But now that they got Dean…they're gonna want to use him. They won't kill him."

"That doesn't make me feel any better," Louise said, trying not to sound like a petulant child. Tears began to prick at her eyes again.

"Pull yourself together, Louise," John said sternly. Louise nodded and surreptitiously swiped at her eyes with her black sleeve. "I'm still gonna hunt the demon down. It did this 'cause I'm close, so I'm obviously scaring it. I'll find the thing I need to kill it and I'll ice it when I find it."

"But – Dean – you can't –" Sam protested. John held up his hand.

"That's where you two come in," he said. "Dean's your brother and it's your job to protect each other. Find those demons and save Dean if you really wanna help. So long as I've got that demon feeling cornered, it's gonna keep Dean alive and use him against me. That gives you two the chance to find Dean. I know you two wanna help me with this demon – I can see it on your faces – but you're my kids and it's my job as your father to look out for you. I don't want you caught in the crossfire."

"But Dad –" Louise tried to protest.

"So you don't care about Dean?" Sam spat. John slowly looked at him, his eyes glimmering furiously.

"How dare you?" he hissed. "Dean is my son and there is  _nothing_  that I would put in front of my children!"

"What, like the demon you've been hunting all your life?" Sam snorted. "Mom and Aunt Cathy are gone, Dad, and you spent our whole lives dragging us around and expecting us to follow your every order!"

Louise felt as though she'd been slapped when Sam mentioned her mom.

"Sam –"

"No," John interrupted her curtly. "Let Sam talk, Louise. I'm interested in what he has to say."

"You just said that you're our father and it's your job to protect us," Sam said furiously. "So how about you help us find Dean instead of going off on your mad quest for revenge? Dean's in trouble because of your obsession with killing that thing!"

"And if I give up hunting that demon then what do you think they're gonna do to Dean?" John's voice was soft but Louise knew that the softer his voice was, the angrier and more dangerous he was. "So long as I'm backing that demon into a corner, Dean's useful to them. If I keep hunting it, I get closer to it and I buy you two more time to find your brother and get him away from those sons of bitches."

"Yeah, I'm sure that buying us time is a wonderful bonus." Sam's voice was dripping with sarcasm and contempt. "You won't rest until you've killed that demon, will you? Even if it means throwing us under a bus!"

Louise couldn't take it anymore. The anger and bitterness and resentment was like a tangible cloud surrounding her and she was either going to explode or just go completely numb!

"Alright, that's ENOUGH!" Louise bellowed when John looked like he might actually hit Sam. "Dean's in trouble and I'm not going to stand around and let you two kill each other when we could be doing something about it!"

"Then do what I tell you!" John said. "I've given you two an order and I expect you two to follow it!"

"Yeah, just like you've been doing our whole lives," Sam said darkly. Louise felt the insatiable urge to either punch something or collapse and not feel a thing.

"Sam, this isn't going to work," she said. "Let Dad go after the fucking demon if he wants to. I won't stop him."

Sam gave her a startled look.

"But – we just found him and now he's gonna disappear on us again when Dean's in trouble!" he said.

"Sammy, I know how much you wanted to find Dad," Louise said quietly, feeling drained as hell. "But come on. Do you really think that we'll make any progress in finding Dean when all you two ever do is fight and argue?"

She didn't want John to disappear again. But she couldn't take the fighting and the hateful barbs thrown at each other!

"But Lou –" Sam tried to say.

"Don't," Louise whispered. "Just – go, Dad. Find the demon. Kill it. Sam and I'll find Dean. I don't even care anymore."

And with that, she turned and left the room.

-LW-

It took Louise only moments to find her favourite place in the dark salvage yard, where she'd always gone as a kid to be alone. Hoping that she wasn't too big and heavy to get there, she climbed on top of the familiar old blue Mustang, which was practically rusted through, and began to scale the pile of broken cars and assorted car parts. She winced when a sharp piece of metal sliced through her black slacks (jeans might have been more durable but Louise found slacks way more comfortable) and opened up a shallow gash on her leg but she ignored the pain and jumped up to the next foothold. Normal people wouldn't have dreamed of doing this but Louise had always had sharp eyes.

"I'm getting too old for this," she wheezed when she finally reached the top of the pile and found the old black '82 Chevy Camaro still there. Careful where she put her feet, she crawled into the front of the car and relaxed against the driver's door, her legs sprawled over the front seats, and she closed her eyes and let out a relieved sigh. Ever since she was old enough to properly climb, this had been the place she'd gone to hide out and have time to herself and she felt a warm, fuzzy feeling that Bobby had still kept it for her, even after their estrangement.

What was she supposed to do? John was their father and Louise knew that she should follow his orders; Dean always had, especially after that shtriga incident with Sam when they were kids. To her utter shame, she'd seen the thing go after Sammy but Dean had been out and she had been too frightened to confront it on her own, so she'd just hidden under her covers until Dean had come back and then claimed that she'd forgotten about the shotgun. John had given her a look that had immediately told her that he knew she was lying and he just hadn't been the same with them afterwards; Dean for leaving when he was meant to be looking after them (even though Louise was only six months younger than Dean) and Louise for being a coward and letting it hurt Sam.

But on the other hand…Sam had a point. How could John still keep hunting that demon when this crusade was the reason Dean was a prisoner in the first place? How could he  _still_  put revenge in front of his kids? Louise may have had her disagreements with John in the past but she hadn't gone off at him like that since Sam had left for Stanford and John had lost it!

A clattering sound snapped Louise out of her thoughts. It sounded like somebody was climbing up the pile of junk outside and, sure enough, Sam's shaggy head poked up into her view after a few moments.

"Hey, Lou," he said.

"Hi, Sammy."

"Mind if I come in?"

"Be my guest."

Sam heaved himself into the car – with difficulty, since he was a mini sasquatch – and tumbled into the backseat, accidentally stepping on Louise's leg in the process. She winced but didn't cry out.

"I remember this," Sam said, looking around with a wistful grin as he settled his long limbs into the back of the car. "You made Dean freak out the first time you came up here."

Louise chuckled weakly.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "He couldn't find me and then he looked up here and yelled at me to get down before I killed myself. But I kept coming up here whenever I needed some time to myself. God, I haven't been up here in so long…"

They lapsed into silence.

"I'm sorry," Sam said. "I shouldn't've yelled at Dad like that. I know you hate it when we argue – even though you yell at him too."

"Not like that," Louise denied. "And not for a while. Ever since that shtriga –"

"Which wasn't your fault," Sam said firmly. "Hell, I'd have freaked out. Dad shouldn't've put all that pressure on you and Dean. He should've raised us properly like a normal father instead of going off on his mad hunts to try and find that demon!"

Another silence.

"We're not gonna convince him otherwise, y'know," Louise said glumly. "Whenever he wants to do something, he does it. And he did make a bit of sense – so long as he's hunting the demon, Dean's useful to them."

"But you'd think he'd at least care about Dean instead of giving us orders and disappearing again!" Sam burst out. "He's always put that thing above everything else, Lou! Even us! Why do you think I walked out?"

"To have a normal life?" Louise said bitingly. "Glad one of us could."

"Lou, don't – I offered –"

"I'm sorry, Sammy. I really was glad that you got out. And you know that I wouldn't have taken you up on that offer. I just wish –" Louise sighed deeply. "I just wish it hadn't gone the way it did. And you didn't even keep in touch with us. We thought you hated us."

"I didn't –"

"What else were we supposed to think? Anyway, that's not important. We were talking about Dean and Dad. We know Dad's not gonna change his mind so I say we work with Bobby and look out for any demonic omens. They always leave traces, don't they?"

"Yeah. But what do we do when we've got nothing?"

"We do what Dean would want us to do. We keep hunting."


	6. Situations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise isn't herself and Dean might need all the shrinks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> One of my problems is that I suck at pacing. I like to get straight to the action instead of padding the story a little, hence why I probably can't seem to finish any novel or canon-divergent fic of mine. So if the pacing is crap then I apologise!
> 
> And also, I know that Sam didn't know about the shtriga before this case in canon but he does here. That's intentional, not a continuity error (okay, maybe it was at first…).

**Chapter 6. Situations**

Much to their surprise, John was still inside when Sam and Louise returned. He gave them a smile, though it was much smaller than before.

"Fine," Louise said, crossing her arms. "We'll track down Dean. Go hunt your stupid demon."

"Don't be like that, Louise," John said softly. Louise tried to ignore the guilt he was heaping on top of her. "Dean's one of the most important things in my life. I'm doing this to protect him."

"Right, because your revenge isn't part of it at all," Sam snorted darkly. John's face darkened.

"It's not all about me," he snapped. "I'd have thought that you two would want the demon gone. Especially you, Louise. You remember your mother."

"Don't," Louise hissed. "Don't bring Mom into this. I know that losing her and Aunt Mary absolutely sucked – because it's one of the worst things that's ever happened to me – but – you know what?" She threw her hands up. "I'm not getting into another fight. Go hunt the demon. Leave me and Sammy behind."

John sighed and approached her, pulling her into a hug.

"I'm doing this for all of us, Lou," he said. "Not just me. I  _want_  you all to be able to have a normal life. I  _want_  Sammy to be able to go to college and law school and be a lawyer. But that can't happen until the demon's dead. It's for all of us."

"Sure," Louise said dully. John patted her on the back before releasing her and giving Sam a tight hug.

"Be safe," John said when he and Sam broke apart. "Kick some demon ass for me and get your brother back. If you need anything…I'll try and answer my phone this time."

He gave an awkward little laugh and then left the living room. Sam and Louise could hear his footsteps all the way outside, followed by the low rumble of a truck engine and then the sound of crunching gravel under tyres. The sound grew fainter as the truck drove away and once John was gone, Louise let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding.

"That went well," she muttered. Sam gave her a sympathetic look.

"I know how much you hate family confrontations," he said. "I'm sorry I –"

"Don't apologise, Sammy," Louise said quietly. "All I want to do is go to bed and forget about this until tomorrow."

"Ya want a bite to eat, first?" Bobby appeared in the living room with two beers and a few sandwiches on a plate.

"What took you so long?" Louise said suspiciously, grinning tiredly. "Hiding out in the kitchen, were you?"

"Makin' sure that the two of ya had food and drink," Bobby retorted, setting the sandwiches down and tossing the beers to Sam and Louise. "And not gettin' involved in what wasn't my business."

"Hey, Bobby? Why did you let Dad in, anyway?" Sam said, cracking open his beer. "What happened to filling him full of rock salt if he stepped foot back here?"

"Knew the two of ya would wanna talk to him, since he's been hidin' out for months," Bobby said with an uncomfortable shrug. "Figured I'd put up with him till ya got here. That went well."

"Better than expected," Louise sighed in agreement, picking a sandwich and taking a bite. Cheese, tomato, onion, lettuce and leftover takeaway spicy chicken – Bobby still knew her favourite! "Should've known that he'd dump this on us and go off after the demon again, anyway."

"So we just have to look for demonic omens and see if it's Meg and the other demon," Sam said.

"Tom," Louise put in.

"Whatever. Will you help us, Bobby?"

"What sorta question is that?" Bobby said, taking a swig of his nearly empty beer. "Course I'll help ya. I'll keep an eye out for any demonic signs. What are the two of ya gonna do in the meantime? Ya can't lay around and do nothin'. It'll drive ya crazy."

"We're gonna keep hunting," Louise said after a moment. "It's – it's what Dean would want us to do. Just – tell us if you find  _anything_ , okay?"

"Damn right, I will." Bobby gave Louise a hug and then did the same to Sam. "Stay here till ya find a case, brush up on yer exorcisms and defences. Ya know Dean'd hate it if ya rushed in blind with no clue how to take care of demons."

"Okay, Bobby," Sam said. He rubbed his eyes, something that made Louise laugh weakly. It was something he'd always done as a kid and seeing it now made Louise feel slightly nostalgic. "Guest room still good?"

"If ya don't mind sharing a bed with yer sister."

"Not like we haven't been doing that for months now. Right, Sammy? 'Night, Bobby."

Sam and Louise trudged upstairs to the guest room. Louise felt tired and exhausted and at some point, she stumbled and Sam quickly grabbed her and steadied her. When they got to the guest room, Louise didn't even bother undressing but dropped onto the bed, falling asleep practically as soon as her head hit the pillow.

-LW-

"…omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursion infernalis adversarii –"

"You said that wrong," Louise said idly, frowning at the Key of Solomon next to her. Bobby had dug this book up that morning and after finding a symbol called a Devil's Trap – which could trap demons inside it – in the book, Louise had focused on nothing else but perfecting her drawings of it. Sam, meanwhile, was trying to memorise an exorcism in case they were stuck without the written recitation, like when he and Dean had taken on the disaster demon on that plane.

"I'd like to see you do better," Sam said, giving her a bitchface. Louise just cursed under her breath and scribbled out the Devil's Trap she'd been drawing.

"Dammit!" she growled. "I'll never get this right!"

"Ya've been at it for hours," Bobby said, setting a beer down in front of her. "Take a break and go have some lunch. And ya can make yer own damn sandwich this time 'cause I ain't yer servant."

Louise threw down her piece of paper.

"Fine," she muttered. "You got any more of that spicy chicken?"

"Nope. Ya want more, ya gotta go get it."

"Okay." Louise stood up. "You want anything, Sammy?"

"A salad," Sam replied, tapping his paper and mumbling some more Latin. Louise just nodded.

"Be back soon."

Louise immediately felt right at home when she slid into the Impala and shut the driver's door. It felt just like Dean was with her and though this felt like a dull stab to the chest, it also felt comforting and Louise closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around herself, allowing herself to feel like Dean was right there and hugging her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, feeling tears prick at her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Dean. We're gonna get you back and those demons are dead. They just don't know it yet."

With that, Louise started the car up, reversed and turned and then drove out of the salvage yard, her hands clenched around the steering wheel.

-LW-

"How are we s'posed to get in there?" Sam muttered as he and Louise eyed up the haunted house from the bushes. The two of them had discovered a case in Richardson, Texas, and gone to investigate the legend of Mordechai Murdoch, a farmer who lived in the house in the 1930's and who reportedly killed his daughters to save them from starving in the Great Depression. They found this legend to be crap and concluded that the case was a hoax but then a girl had apparently hung herself in the house, so they returned to investigate.

"We'll have to – oh, I don't fucking believe it," Louise growled softly when she heard whispers nearby. Their investigations into the house had been made harder by two amateur wannabe ghost hunters, Harry Spangler and Ed Zeddmore, who were constantly turning up at the wrong times and taking every chance to belittle the real hunters. And this was one of those times.

"How do we get rid of 'em?" Sam said.

"I got this." Louise cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted, "Who ya gonna call?" Ed and Harry reacted almost immediately, drawing the attention of the cops to themselves, and once the scene was clear, a laughing Sam and Louise sprinted from their hiding place and into the house.

"That," Sam wheezed, holding his side, "was brilliant, Lou!"

"I  _had_  to!" Louise grinned. "I mean, their names? They were just asking for it!"

"Yeah," Sam chuckled. "That's the sort of thing that –" He broke off. "Never mind."

"That Dean would do?" Louise said sharply, all traces of laughter gone. Sam looked away awkwardly.

"Yeah…"

Louise didn't say anything, instead accepting a rifle from Sam.

"Louise –"

"If you're gonna jump on my case about how much I'm supposedly emulating our brother then you can shut it, Sam."

"But I –"

"Not now. We've got a ghost to gank."

The 'ghost' turned out to be a Tulpa, a physical manifestation of thought that came into existence when someone drew a Tibetan Spirit Sigil inside the house as part of a prank. Then the Ghostbusters 2.0 had put it on their website, which resulted in thousands of people seeing and focusing on it and inadvertently bringing Mordechai to life. As the Ghostbusters 2.0 kept updating their website, the legend changed and so did Mordechai, making him nearly impossible to deal with. Eventually, Sam and Louise ended up setting the house on fire – without the house, Mordechai wouldn't exist as the house was tied in with the legend.

-LW-

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii –"

"Nice work, Sammy! You're getting there!"

"– omnis legio, omnis…uh…"

"…Like I said, you're getting there."

"How're you going with the Devil's Trap?"

"…It's a work in progress. This is why I was never an artist…"

-LW-

The sound of footsteps roused the unconscious blond. Wincing at his throbbing head, he cracked his eyes open and noticed that he was sitting on a cold floor in a small, dim room and his hands were tied behind his back. Where the hell was he now?

"Awake at last?" Meg chuckled, crouching down next to him. "Hey there, baby."

"Don't tell me you've brought me somewhere new," Dean groaned. "I gotta say, sweetheart, we're moving way too fast. I don't even see a chick's home before at least the third date, let alone all her secret hideouts."

Meg giggled, a sound that made Dean want to hurl.

"Where's your brother?" he said. "You finally get tired of him and shiv his ass?"

"Tom's…around," Meg said mysteriously. "That's none of your business. But he  _has_  asked for your baby sister once we get our hands on them. If he behaves…who knows? Maybe he'll get his reward."

Dean clenched his fists.

"If any of you lay a finger on Sam or Louise, I'll kill you," he snarled. "With my bare hands."

"Cute," Meg said. "But I'm glad you're finally awake. There's someone who's simply dying to meet you. He's been asking for you for ages!"

For a single, horrible moment, Dean was terrified that she had captured John and was now going to torture John or torture him to get to his father. It was almost a relief when the man who walked through the door had grey hair, sickly yellow eyes and a cocky grin. What the hell kind of a demon had yellow eyes, though?

"You're finally awake, champ!" The yellow-eyed demon clapped his hands. "I hope your accommodations aren't too uncomfortable. Don't worry, this is only a temporary arrangement. Now, how about introductions?"

Dean put two and two together. John was tracking down a powerful demon that had killed Mary and Cathy. A yellow-eyed demon was unheard of, meaning that this one was pretty powerful, and why else would demons be interested in him, especially after Meg and Tom's admission that Chicago had been a trap?

"You're the demon that Dad's tracking," Dean said. "You killed Mom and Aunt Cathy." The demon clapped again.

"Bravo! I knew that Sammy was the smart cookie of the lot but it's nice to see that you got some of those brains as well. Must be your blood."

"My what?"

"Sorry, can't say. Spoilers! But you'd know all about that, eh?"

"What about spoilers?"

The demon sighed and shook his head.

"Silly me. It was 2008, right? I'm just a tad early."

Dean was thoroughly confused. Why the hell was the demon talking about two years in the future?

"But no matter! Azazel here, at your service. Well, not really but best to get all the formalities out of the way, eh?"

"What are you going to do to me?" Dean said defiantly. "Dad's a determined son of a bitch. He wouldn't give up his mission just for me, so using me as bait –"

"Oh, he would," Azazel said. "You know, the whole 'family first' issue you Winchesters have going on. I mean, I heard that he's still hunting for me and leaving your brother and sister with the nasty job of trying to find you but hey, I'm sure you don't want to hear about that boring stuff!"

Dean didn't know whether to be hurt or relieved. On the one hand, John was still on his mission to kill Azazel and Dean was glad for that. But on the other hand, did John even care about him? Was he really dumping this crap on Sammy and Lou?

"And all that's much too cliché and easy," Azazel continued. "You tend to get tired of the whole 'exchange' situation after the first hundred times."

Azazel knelt down in front of Dean, who was starting to get a very bad feeling.

"So I'm trying something different. I want to have some real fun! And you're going to help me do that."

"Sorry," Dean said, starting to hyperventilate as he figured out just what this demon was going to do. "I've got this thing about not helping demons. Kinda goes against everything I stand for."

Azazel just grinned widely.

"You figured out my dastardly plan, didn't you?" he said. "Ingenious, right?"

"Don't you dare do it!" Dean growled. His heart was pounding, he was sweating profusely and his breaths were quick and shallow. "So help me, if you do this –"

Azazel tilted his head with a sick little smile.

"Threats," he said. "You really know the way to a guy's heart, don't you? Now, open wide!"

Azazel's head snapped back and his black smoke streamed out of the man's mouth. Dean tried to turn away, to keep his mouth shut, but the smoke forced his mouth open and poured down his throat. He was choking…coughing…trying to expel the demon…he couldn't feel his body…he felt disconnected, like he was just a passenger in this meat suit…he was being shoved into some corner of his mind…

Now fully in control, Azazel raised his head to smile at Meg and then broke his bonds, stood up and crossed over to a nearby window. Trapped deep in his own mind, Dean recoiled in horror at the sickly yellow irises shining back at him.

"Let's have some fun!" he felt himself say, though he wasn't the one moving his mouth.


	7. Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Between Sam and a blast from the past, Louise's had enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> So I know that not much is diverging from canon in these cases and that Louise is becoming a clone of Dean and saying all of his lines but, well…that's the point. Also, I seem to have a thing for possessed Dean. I did it in 'As Time Goes By', I did it in 'Black' and I did it here. I dunno, maybe it's because he's the only one who hasn't been possessed by a demon or an angel
> 
> Also, the chapter title is named after the song by Shannon Noll. I felt it fitting, especially the chorus, considering what Louise has been going through in the last few chapters.

**Chapter 7. Tomorrow**

The next case they undertook was in Fitchburg, Wisconsin, where children were falling into mysterious comas and growing weaker and weaker each day. Sam and Louise went to question the doctor in charge of the paediatrics ward, Doctor Hydeker, who showed them the unconscious, pale children and said that their bodies were practically wearing themselves out. A nurse who was stopping by also mentioned that it seemed to spread through families and Louise frowned at that. She was certain that she'd encountered something before but for the life of her, she just couldn't figure out what or when!

"Do you ever get this really weird sense of déjà vu?" Louise murmured to Sam as they left the hospital. "I could've sworn that we've dealt with something like this before…"

Sam just shrugged.

The two of them then went to investigate the house of two of the victims and after finding rotted, bony handprint on the daughter's windowsill, Louise nearly fell over and was thrown into a violent flashback.

" _You know the drill, you two," John said to ten-year-old Dean and nine-year-old Louise as he cocked a shotgun and rested it near the doorway. Dean and Louise were staring at a photo of a rotting handprint. "Don't pick up if anyone calls. If it's me, I'll ring once and call back."_

" _We know, Dad," Louise said in a bored voice._

" _Come on, Lou." John ruffled her short brown hair and she giggled. "This stuff's important. Anything could happen, so it's crucial that you know it."_

" _We're not stupid, Dad," Dean said. "We've gone over this a million times."_

" _I know but it only takes one mistake." John continued packing his things. "If I'm not back by Sunday night…?"_

" _We call Pastor Jim," Dean and Louise chorused._

" _Lock everything up and close the curtains. Most importantly…"_

" _Watch out for Sammy and Lou," Dean said. Sammy, who was sprawled on the couch watching cartoons, paid them no mind but Louise pouted. She wasn't a baby! John trusted her enough that it was her job to take care of Sammy with Dean but he still made Dean take care of her and that made her upset._

" _If something tries to bust in?"_

" _Shoot first, ask questions later," Dean responded._

" _That's my man." John put a hand on Dean's shoulder and then turned to Louise. "Be brave, Lou."_

" _Love you, Dad," Louise said with a toothy grin. John didn't respond, instead ruffling her hair and leaving the motel room. Louise's smile melted like hot butter._

"He's faced this before," Louise murmured, her eyes glued to the handprint. "That's why he sent us here. It's a shtriga."

"What, like in Fort Douglas?" Sam said in alarm. Originally, Dean and Louise had been instructed not to tell Sam about the shtriga but when a thirteen year old Sam and a seventeen year old Louise had gotten into a massive argument when Dean and John were away on a hunt and Sam had asked why Louise was so keen to follow John's instructions, Louise had broken down and told him everything. Sam hadn't blamed her and Dean but it still weighed terribly on Louise's shoulders…

"I dunno. Maybe," Louise said, swallowing. "It might not even be the same one. But we've gotta take care of it."

"I didn't see anything about shtrigas in Dad's journal."

"Trust me, Sammy. I know how to take care of them."

"How, then?"

"They're usually invulnerable to absolutely anything but you can blast them with iron rounds while they're feeding. We just have to catch it when it is."

After a bit of research, Sam found that shtrigas could take a human disguise and they went to investigate their first suspect: an old lady with an inverted cross on her wall. However, the woman just turned out to be an old crone with a loose cross and when Sam found a picture from 1893 with Dr Hydeker in it, they knew they'd found their monster.

"Okay, so how are we s'posed to find him when he's feeding?" Louise said.

"It works through siblings, right?" Sam said. "Last night, it went after Asher." Asher was the youngest son of the woman who ran the motel they were staying at and she and her oldest son, Michael, had been distraught when Asher had fallen 'ill' that morning.

"So it's gonna come after Michael tonight." Louise felt sick to her stomach.

"We gotta get Michael outta there," Sam said. Louise was silent and he stared at her. "Wait, you're not thinking –"

"If we move Michael, we blow it," Louise said, feeling even sicker. "Trust me, Sammy, I hate this idea just as much as you but if it gets away, it's gonna be another fifteen to twenty years before it resurfaces and goes after more kids! This way, we protect Michael _and_ we get rid of it!"

"So you're just gonna use Michael as bait –"

"What else can I do, Sam?" Louise burst out, tears in her eyes. "This mess is my fault! Dean just went out for some air but I'm the one who stayed in bed and cowered like the chicken I am when I could have blasted it and stopped this!"

" _Dean, where are you going?" Louise said when Dean started to unlatch the door._

" _I need some air," Dean said._

" _But Dad said –"_

" _Shut up, Lou!" Dean shouted. "You're too little to understand! I'll be back soon!" He slammed the door behind him and Louise, sniffing, stumbled over to the couch, wiping the tears from her face. Dean had yelled at her. He never yelled at her! That was John's job! And she was_ not _too little! She was only six months younger than Dean!_

_After trying to watch a cartoon and not being able to get into it, Louise decided to turn in for the night. She climbed into bed, staring at her sleeping little brother, and when she heard the window open, she froze. It couldn't be! Could it?_

_It was. Louise whimpered when a tall black shape crossed the room over to Sammy's bed and she thought about running for the shotgun but she didn't know what the monster would do. Would it come after her? Louise didn't want that! So she selfishly stayed hidden in bed, watching in horror as the creature leaned over Sammy with a glowing mouth. When she saw Dean in the doorway with the shotgun, it was too much and she let out a scream. The monster looked up, caught sight of Dean and hissed. Suddenly, there was a crashing noise and John appeared in the doorway._

" _Get out of the way!" he bellowed. Dean jumped aside and John shot at the monster but it managed to get away by jumping through the window. John rushed over to Sammy and grabbed him, waking him up._

" _Sammy! Sammy! You okay?" John pulled Sammy close._

" _Yeah," Sammy said sleepily. "What's going on?"_

" _I'm sorry, Dad," Louise sniffed, getting out of her bed and crawling onto Sammy's. "I was watching but – but the monster scared me and I forgot about the gun and – it got away! I'm sorry!" Okay, the forgetting about the shotgun was a lie but Louise didn't want John to get mad at her!_

" _We'll discuss this later, Louise," John said coldly. Louise nearly threw up, knowing that John didn't believe her and just how much trouble she was in. "What happened, Dean?"_

" _I – I just went out," Dean stammered. "Just for a second! I'm sorry!" John looked livid._

" _I told you not to leave this room!" he hissed. "I told you not to let Sammy out of your sight! And Louise, I told you to protect Sammy! That's your job as well as Dean's!"_

"…not your fault," Sam was saying. Louise shook her head to shove the flashback aside. "You panicked, Lou! And Dean was only ten! No ten year old can take care of their brother and sister and not need some time to themselves! It's Dad's fault for not being there!"

Louise looked away, struggling to hold back her tears.

"Sure, Sam," she mumbled. "But don't you see? I have to kill this thing. And the only way to do that is with Michael's help. I'd be the bait but the thing needs to get close enough to feed. I absolutely hate it but we need Michael."

However, actually telling Michael was a different story. He called them a bunch of crazy wack jobs and threatened to call the cops but when Louise revealed that the thing had attacked Sam once and that she knew what it looked like, Michael admitted that he'd seen it and that he'd thought he was dreaming. When Louise outlined her plan, Michael freaked out and told them to get out.

"That went well," Louise remarked back in their room.

"He's a kid!" Sam said. "An _adult_ would freak out at someone asking that of them!"

But a knock at the door revealed Michael, who asked if doing this would help his brother get better.

"You'd do anything for your little brother?" Michael said. Louise nodded furiously, feeling more like Dean in that moment than ever before. Would Dean be proud of her right now? "Me too. I'll do it."

After installing a camera in Michael's room, Louise instructed him to wait under the covers until the shtriga turned up and when they burst into the room, to drop out of bed and get under and not to come out until they said so.

Hours later, Sam and Louise were waiting in the next room for the shtriga to show up, their eyes glued to the screen.

"I'm worried, Lou," Sam said suddenly.

"Kill me now," Louise muttered.

"The way you acted back in Richardson, how you've been on this case…you're acting more and more like Dean. I just think –"

"Look, Sammy, shut the hell up. This thing could pop up at any moment and I'm not getting distracted."

"But Lou –"

"Shh! What's that?" Louise pointed at a movement on the screen.

"Is that –?"

"I bet that's the son of a bitch," Louise muttered. The sight of the shtriga made her heart start to beat faster but she forced her fear down. She wasn't going to fail this time. She wasn't going to let Michael down!

"Now?" Sam asked as the shtriga approached a petrified Michael.

"Not yet," Louise murmured. When the shtriga bent over Michael and started to feed on him, the two hunters burst into the room with their guns out.

"Get down, Michael!" Louise ordered. When Michael had rolled under the bed, they opened fire on the shtriga and it fell to the ground.

"You alright, Mikey?" Sam said as Louise went to check if the shtriga was dead.

"Yeah," Michael said shakily.

"Just stay under there for a minute," Louise said, squinting at the corpse. And good thing that Michael did, because the shtriga was far from dead. It jolted up, grabbed Louise by the throat and threw her into the wall. It then turned to Sam, smashed him into the ground and began to feed from him, sucking the life energy out as pale blue wisps. Louise stared in horror. This was so not happening again!

"Hey!" she bellowed, reaching for her gun. When the shtriga turned to face her, she raised her gun and blasted it straight in the chest. Shooting it one more contemptuous look, Louise crossed over to Sam and asked, in a much softer tone, "You okay, Sammy?"

"Yeah," Sam groaned, holding up a shaky thumbs-up. Louise helped Sam up and they watched as more blue energy escaped from the shtriga's body before Louise aimed her gun at it and fired once again, making sure that it was dead.

"You can come out, Mikey," she said. Michael crawled out from under the bed, shooting them a small, shy smile.

' _It's over,'_ Louise thought in relief.

-LW-

Once they got back to Bobby's, Sam dragged Louise away. Louise sighed, remembering when he'd done this the night they'd got here.

"Alright, that's it," Sam said. "No monsters, no distractions, nothing. Now, talk."

Louise crossed her arms.

"About what?" she said. Sam crossed his own arms, his eyebrows raised.

"You know perfectly well what," he said. "The Impala. The pie. The music. The cases. You're becoming more and more like Dean!"

"Fuck off, Sam," Louise snarled, trying to push past him. Sam grabbed her shoulders to stop her.

"You're not walking away again, Lou!" he exclaimed. "You're changing to be like Dean! Hell, you don't even wear your jacket anymore and we used to have better luck asking a monster to politely stop killing people than getting you to take it off!"

"Maybe I don't like it anymore!"

"It used to be Aunt Cathy's! Don't give me that crap!"

"Dean hated it! He said the colour made him want to hurl!"

"There! See? Dean didn't like it, so you're not wearing it. It's all about Dean and I don't even know who you are anymore! I want Louise back!"

"I _am_ Louise!"

"Really? 'Cause that's not what I've been seeing lately!"

"Just leave me alone!" Louise once again tried to push past and Sam once again stopped her.

"You're not leaving until we talk!"

"Fine!" Louise screamed. Everything that she had been bottling up and burying ever since Dean's capture came bursting out in one painful explosion. "You wanna talk? Fine! Let's talk about how it's my fault that the demons caught us! Even with my monster radar, they still managed to get the drop on us! Let's talk about how Dean sacrificed himself so that we could escape because Dad always fucking told him that his _one_ job was to take care of us! Not to be happy or do something for himself but throw away his whole life for us, even though I'm only six months younger and still had to look after you as well and should have shouldered more of that burden!"

Sam stared at Louise, wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

"What _is_ my job, Sam? 'Help Dean take care of Sammy' or 'Do what Dean says and be the younger sister'? Because I don't know whether I'm s'posed to protect you or be the baby sister! I had to help take care of you but no, I was too young to be treated like an adult like Dean was! Do you know how fucking confusing that is?"

Louise felt tears begin to slide down her cheeks.

"What the hell am I supposed to do, Sam?" she cried. "What's my purpose? Dean's purpose is to protect you and watch out for you. Your purpose is to be the typical kid brother and have a normal life! But what am _I_ supposed to do?"

Louise was now fully crying. Sam carefully approached her and pulled her into a hug.

"So you thought that by acting like Dean, you'd have a purpose," he said. Louise shrugged.

"I don't know!" she sobbed, wiping her face. "I don't know! I just – Dean always had one purpose and now he's not here and _somebody_ had to drive Baby and eat pie and play loud mullet rock and be a total asshole! It doesn't feel _right_ without Dean!"

Louise knew that she should be ashamed of having a full-on meltdown in front of Sam but she couldn't even find it in herself to care. All she could do was cling to Sam's dampening shirt and not look like a total weak female until her sobs finally died down to hiccups. Wiping her face with her jacket sleeve, she stepped away and levelled a not-so-tough glare at Sam.

"You tell anyone about this and no one'll ever find your body," she said. Sam held his hands up. "Good. Now, c'mon. Bobby's probably wondering where we are."

"Let's get your jacket first. You're not Louise without it."

Louise grinned at Sam weakly.

"Sure thing, Sammy."

-LW-

"Found anything yet, Bobby?"

"I told ya, girl. These demons are coverin' their tracks. No omens anywhere for months."

"Yay. Dad'll be _thrilled_."

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii, omnis legio, omnis congregatio et secta diabolica."

"Yay! You're doing it, Sammy!"

"Ergo, draco maledicte. Uh…ecce – ecclesiam tuam secure tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus. Audi nos!"

"You got it! You sure that's all it takes to force a demon out, Bobby?"

"Pretty sure. There's a longer one but that's all waffly, so ya can skip the psalms and go straight to the actual thing."

"You got that Devil's Trap, Lou?"

"Well, the circle's still a bit wonky but hey, it'll have to do! Now all we have to do is find Dean."


	8. Turns Out Vampires DON'T Sparkle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise learns the hard way that Twilight is all a lie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Yes, 'Provenance' did happen. But since nothing important occurs, I figured I'd skip it. And yes, I did ship Sam and Sarah so it's not like I dislike the episode because I do like it.

**Chapter 8. Turns Out Vampires DON'T Sparkle**

"Reckon we should open it?" Louise said, eyeing the envelope in her hands that they'd retrieved from the post office. Before Sam could reply, there was a knock on her window and Louise reared back, her fist automatically raised to punch whoever it was. But when she saw the smiling face of their father, she gasped.

"Dad?" she said. John smiled and slid into the backseat, Sam and Louise turning around to face him.

"Dad, what are you doing here?" Sam said. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," John said distractedly. "How close are you to those demons?"

"Bobby's been keeping an eye out for any demonic signs," Louise said, feeling both happy and irritated to see her father again after being ditched for a month. "But they're covering their tracks so Sam and I've been –"

"I trusted you with one job, Lou." John didn't shout but the disappointment was clear in his voice and Louise swallowed, trying to hold back tears. "I thought you'd have a lead on your brother by now."

"Well, it's a bit difficult when the demons don't leave us anything to track them with," Sam said bitingly, his mood shifting from happy to annoyed in a second. Louise was tempted to tell him off for being so disrespectful but being in Dean's role and being the one in charge of pleasing their father and protecting Sam had opened her eyes to just how much of an asshole John could be.

"Can we not fight?" she said instead. "We did the best we could and I'm sorry if that's not good enough. Now, why are you here, Dad?"

John gave her a sharp look but Louise met his eyes defiantly.

"I came out here for Daniel," he said after a moment. "I read about it in the news and I got here as fast as I could. Saw you two at his place."

"And you didn't come in?" Sam said, looking hurt.

"You know why I didn't, Sammy," John replied. "I had to make sure you weren't being followed. Nice job hiding your trail."

Louise swelled with pride but she didn't say anything, still annoyed with John.

"So, you knew Elkins?" she said. "His name and number were in your journal so we came out here to Colorado."

"Yeah," John said sadly. "He was…he was a good man. Taught me pretty much everything I know about hunting. Never told you about him because we had a…falling out. Hadn't seen him in years. Let me look at that."

He took the letter from Louise and opened the envelope.

"'If you're reading this, I'm already dead'…the son of a bitch! He had it the whole time!"

"Had what?" Sam said.

"Did you find a gun anywhere in his place when you searched it? An old Colt revolver?"

"There was a case but it was empty," Louise said, wondering what her father was on about.

"They've got it," John muttered angrily.

"Whatever killed Elkins?" Louise said.

"We've gotta pick up the trail." John got out of the car.

"We? You're letting us come with you?" Sam said, while Louise fought to keep the grin off her face.

"Yeah. If Elkins was right then we need to find this gun. It's important if we want to get Dean back."

"But why? And what killed Elkins?"

"Vampires."

-LW-

"Sam, Louise, let's go."

Louise groaned when a hand slapped her feet and her eyes cracked open. She struggled to sit up on the motel bed, her dark hair sticking out everywhere. On the next bed, Sam was also slowly waking up.

"I picked up a police call," John replied. "A couple call 911 about a body, cops get there, no one's there. The vampires got to them."

"How do you know?" Sam asked, fumbling for his jacket.

"Just – follow me, okay?" John said exasperatedly.

In the Impala, Sam and Louise ran through the checklist that John had given them of what to look out for in vampires.

"Sunlight doesn't kill them," Louise said. "Hurts like a bad sunburn."

"Neither do crosses or stakes to the heart," Sam added, frowning down at John's journal as he searched for more information.

"They do drink human blood."

"They were humans before so you can't tell until it's too late."

"That's all he told us. Anything else in that journal?"

"Give me a few minutes." Sam continued flipping the pages. "They live in nests of up to ten vamps and they bring victims back to bleed for weeks, making them last. They don't have to hunt all the time, so there's no clear pattern to missing victims."

"Hooray," Louise muttered. "Why can't they be like in _Twilight_? Sparkly skin, no fangs, pedophilic tendencies…I'd really love to ice them."

"But they're nearly invulnerable," Sam pointed out. "You have to hack them into pieces and burn their remains."

Louise stared at Sam.

"Since when do you read trash like that?" she said. "I didn't know you were into abusive stalker vampires."

"Shut up!" Sam said quickly. "I didn't read it! Jess did!"

"Man, you need better taste in girls, Sammy."

"She only read it so she could go on this massive rant about how unhealthy the relationship was and how disgusting the book was in general."

"Atta girl!"

-LW-

Once at the scene, John questioned the cops while the others hung back and Sam sulked about being left out. Louise contemplated whether it was too late to disappear.

' _Knew the peace and Sam's joy at seeing Dad was too good to be true,'_ she sighed to herself.

"It was them," John confirmed when he returned. "They're heading west. We'll have to double back."

"How can you be so sure?" Sam said.

"Sam…" Louise said warningly.

"I just wanna know we're going in the right direction!"

"We are."

"How do you know?" In response to Sam's question, John handed something to Louise. Her eyebrows rose when she saw that it was a vampire fang – or, as John called it, tooth. Apparently, vampires had a second set of teeth that appeared when they attacked. John asked Sam if he had any more questions but Sam just looked away.

"Can we just get through this with minimal arguments?" Louise pleaded. "Please?"

"Whatever," Sam muttered, getting into the Impala. Louise quickly followed before John could make a scathing remark, leaving their father to trudge back to his truck.

"I get that Dad's infuriating," Louise said. "And I get that he treats us like kids and expects us to do everything he says with minimal information. But please, for my own sanity, just don't argue with him! We only just got him back after another month!"

Sam just snorted darkly.

-LW-

' _I knew this was going to happen,'_ Louise thought dully as Sam and John tore at each other's throats after Sam had forced Louise to pull over. Why couldn't they get along for five minutes? Was it really that difficult for Sam to stow his crap and work with John so that they could get this gun that could apparently help them save Dean?

"Sammy, come on, save the questions for later," Louise pleaded. Why did Sam have to pick every little possible fight with their father?

"Your sister's right, Sam. We don't have time for this."

John then tried to order Sam back into the car but Sam refused. This went back and forth before Louise intervened and pushed Sam away towards the Impala.

"Sorry about that, Dad," she said apologetically. "Sammy's just tired and –"

"Get in the damn car, Louise, and stop wasting time," was John's curt response. Louise's jaw set and she stormed back to the Impala, blinking back tears. Fine. If that was how John was going to be then fuck it! She wasn't going to put up with his –

"This is why I left in the first place," Sam muttered. Louise stiffened. Oh, hell. Time for round two!

"What'd you say?" John's voice was quiet but Louise could hear the anger in it.

"You heard me," Sam challenged.

"Yeah. You left. Your brother and sister and I, we needed you and you turned your back." John was now in Sam's face. "You walked away!"

"Stop it!" Louise pleaded.

"You're the one who said don't come back!" Sam shouted. "You told me to stay away! You were just pissed that I wasn't some kid that you could order around anymore!"

"Stop it! That's enough!" Louise screeched as she jumped in the middle and pushed Sam and John apart. They continued to glare resentfully at each other and so Louise kept a hold of Sam, not wanting to risk a fist fight.

"Come on, guys," she said, desperate to stop the fighting. "The more we argue, the further away they get!"

John just turned and stormed back to his truck, while Sam angrily got into the Impala.

"Terrific," Louise mumbled in exhaustion. "I liked it better when Dad was gone."

-LW-

"You really wanna know about the Colt?" John said suddenly the next day, while the three of them were hiding out and spying on the vampires' hideout. Louise's eyebrows rose in surprise; their dad was going to share information with them willingly? What happened to only sharing 'as much info as they needed'?

"Yes, sir," Sam said a little stiffly. John launched into his tale. According to legend, a man called Samuel Colt fashioned a gun and thirteen bullets in 1835 under Halley's Comet – a special gun and bullets that could kill anything. He used it several times before both he and the gun disappeared.

"Kill anything?" Louise blinked. "You mean –?"

"The demon," Sam realised. John nodded and admitted that he'd been looking for a way to kill the demon for months and the gun just might be the answer.

"And once we've got the gun, we can find the demons that took Dean and kill 'em," John finished. They sat in silence for a moment.

"So, Dad, what's the plan?" Sam said.

"Walking right in isn't an option."

"Actually, that's the plan," John said. Sam and Louise stared at him as though he'd grown an extra head. "Wait till they're asleep, sneak right in, find the Colt and then get out. Then we can start tracking down this demon."

"This'll go down well," Louise muttered but John waved irritably at her, signalling for her to be quiet.

"C'mon," he said. They crept around to the side of the barn and he quietly pushed the barn window open.

"Just cause they're sleepin' doesn't mean they won't wake up, so keep it down," he whispered before jumping through the window. Sam followed and then Louise, who almost stumbled when she landed but easily regained her balance. She looked around at the dozing vampires in disgust, feeling a lead weight settle in her gut that immediately told her that they were monsters and not humans.

The trio split up. John went to check the stalls, while Sam and Louise took opposite sides of the barn. Careful not to wake the sleeping vampires, they tiptoed around each hammock, searching for any place the Colt might be. However, an unearthly roar startled the two of them and Louise swore loudly and stumbled back into a hammock. The vampire that Louise fell into awoke immediately and when she tried to bolt for the doors, the vampire grabbed her around the middle and held her back. Louise screamed and tried to struggle free but the vampire was too strong.

"Run!" John called. Louise struggled even harder to get free but the vampire wasn't letting her go and the female vampire that Sam had mistaken for human and freed rushed over and helped the male vampire pin a screaming, kicking Louise down. The doors to the barn opened and the vampires in pursuit of Sam and John skidded to a halt, glaring outside resentfully.

"Someone shut the damn door!" a shirtless male – the leader, Louise presumed – bellowed. The other vampires hurried to pull the doors closed as the leader slowly approached Louise, a small smile on his face. If she hadn't known that he was an evil vampire – and she hadn't been able to sense his inhuman essence – Louise might have thought that he was another harmless cute guy.

"Well, what do we have here?" he said softly. "What's your name, babe?"

Louise's eyes flashed but she didn't reply. The leader just laughed.

"What do we do with her, Luther?" a female clad in a bra and jeans asked.

"Can we eat her?" A woman wearing a short skirt and a cowboy hat licked her lips. Luther looked at Louise thoughtfully.

"Not yet," he said. "They wanted the gun. That means they'll be back, especially if they left this one behind." He smiled at Louise again, whose stomach was starting to twist.

"So they'll come back for her and we'll kill them?" the vampire in the bra said eagerly.

"That's right, Kate," Luther said with a fond smile. He jerked a thumb at the post where the 911 vampire (damn, Louise needed better nicknames for them) had been bound. "Stick her over there. Beau, Bella, keep an eye on her. Kate, babe, I have a job for you."

Beau and 911 – who Louise presumed was Bella – dragged Louise over to the post and then started to wind thick loops of rope around her, tying her tightly to the post. Louise tested her bonds once the vampires left her but they didn't give. She sighed and slumped against the post, hoping that her dad and brother didn't do anything rash.


	9. Vampires Will Never Hurt You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John's actually cool and reasonable for once?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

 

**Chapter 9. Vampires Will Never Hurt You**

Later that night, Kate and a vampire called Hank slipped out of the barn to go and do the 'special job' that Luther had given them. While the other vampires partied, Luther leaned against Louise's post and swigged a beer.

"Having fun, babe?" he grinned at Louise. Louise stared ahead, resolutely ignoring him. However, this plan bit the dust when Luther tangled his fingers in her dark brown hair and pulled her head up so that he could look her straight in the eyes.

"Don't be a party pooper, hon," Luther pouted. "Want to have some fun?"

In response, Louise spat in his face. She had a brief moment of satisfaction before Luther backhanded her across the face. She automatically tried to raise a hand to touch her tender cheek but the ropes binding her prevented her from doing so.

"Is that any way to treat your new father?" Luther said softly. Louise frowned. "You're gonna be one of us soon. How would those other hunters like to see you turned into a vampire before their very eyes? Would they kill you, a monster? Or would you take them out first, driven mad from the longing for their blood?"

Louise's eyes widened but she said nothing. Luther smirked.

"Now that I think about it, beer just isn't doing it." Luther took one last swig of beer and then chucked the bottle over his shoulder. Louise gulped when Luther gave her a small, sinister smile, his second set of teeth sliding out smoothly. He straddled her, pulling her head back by her hair, and plunged his teeth into her neck. Louise let out a scream that was drowned out by the laughter of the other vampires.

' _Where the hell are you, Dad?'_ she thought desperately before blacking out.

-LW-

When Louise awoke, it was to see all of the vampires standing outside as a car pulled up.

"Any sign of them?" Luther asked him. Louise shook her head to wake herself up and shifted in place.

"No," the vampire said. "And they cut off Hank's head!"

Louise grinned.

"And Kate?" Luther said.

"I dunno. She wasn't there," the panicking vampire said. Louise's grin grew wider and pride for her family swelled in her. "What are we gonna do?"

The vampires seemed to hear something and they all turned to face the nearby highway Louise strained her ears but she couldn't hear what the vampires could hear.

"Kate," Luther hissed. "She's in that truck!"

Louise couldn't help herself. She threw back her head and let out a long, loud laugh, not even stopping when Luther appeared next to her. She only stopped when he punched her in the face but she kept a satisfied smirk on her face.

"You messed with the wrong family, buddy," Louise taunted. "You screw with one of us, you regret it."

"Shut your mouth," Luther hissed, now very pissed off. "If they've hurt Kate in any way, you'll be lying on the road with your innards spilled out!"

"No, I won't," Louise said smugly. "Because if you do that, you won't get Kate back."

Luther's face twitched menacingly and he slapped her in the mouth.

"Get the gun," he ordered a vampire as Louise spat out the blood pooling in her mouth. While the vampires were preparing to roll out, he untied Louise. Beau and Bella grabbed her arms immediately to prevent her from making a run for it and Luther tied her hands behind her back so tightly that Louise could feel the circulation slowly being cut off, then grabbed her hair.

"Mike, stay behind and guard the nest," he ordered. "Everyone else, come with me." He pulled Louise out of the barn by her hair and shoved her into the back seat of one of the cars, with Beau and Bella sliding in the back to guard her (man, Louise was really starting to love these two). Luther slid into the driver's seat and then the two cars pulled out of the yard and onto the highway.

"Enjoying the ride, sweetheart?" Luther said, looking at Louise through his rear view mirror.

"Having the time of my life, babe," Louise smirked, in a far better mood now that John and Sam had something over the vampires. She was still a little scared – who wouldn't be? – but she knew that John wouldn't let her die. He was John Winchester! A couple of vampires couldn't take him down!

"There he is," Luther muttered when he caught sight of the truck ahead. The two cars chased John's truck for a minute or so before pulling off the highway and taking a shortcut. Once far ahead enough, the two cars pulled over and Luther signalled for Bella and Beau to get out and leave Louise, who he hauled out himself by her hair.

"Ready to introduce me to the family, babe?" Luther smirked, wrapping an arm around Louise's shoulders while keeping a hold of her hair.

"Sorry but I don't usually do 'meet the family' till I've been going steady for a coupla months," Louise shrugged. Luther just chuckled.

"I like you," he said. "You've got spirit. You'll make a wonderful addition to our nest."

And there was that tight feeling again.

"Alexis, hand me the knife," Luther ordered. Cowgirl – Alexis – gave Luther a wicked-looking knife, which meant that he let Louise's hair go, and Louise took advantage of the distracted state of the vampires to start working her hands free of her bonds. Hopefully, she could get them undone by the time the hostage exchange took place. She wasn't stupid enough to think that the vampires would just let her go – not after her father had kidnapped the leader's girlfriend.

A sudden flash of lights nearly blinded Louise and when her eyes adjusted, she saw that it was her father's truck that had stopped metres away from them. Luther immediately raised the knife to Louise's throat, stopping just short of drawing blood, though it did sting her bite marks.

"Get out!" Luther ordered. John did so, his eyes glued on Louise. "Who are you?"

"Name's Winchester," John replied.

"Where's your tall friend?"

"Cleaning out your nest."

Louise grinned.

"You okay, Lou?" John called in a tight voice, not taking his eyes off Louise's bruised and bloody face. "Did they hurt you?"

"I'm fine, Dad!" Louise replied. "Just a coupla hits but nothing I couldn't handle!" Even if she couldn't handle it, admitting weakness to John Winchester was a very bad idea anyway. John's eyes flashed furiously, especially when he caught sight of her bloody, scarred neck

"They fed from you, didn't they?" he said. Louise didn't answer, which just made John even angrier.

"Where's Kate?" Luther dug the knife harder into Louise's throat. Louise swallowed nervously as she began to realise that with four vampires and a hostage against her dad, he might not make it out alive.

"Kate, you alright?" Luther called when John pulled a groggy, bound Kate out, his own knife at her throat.

"Dead man's blood," Kate replied woozily.

"You son of a bitch," Luther whispered.

"I take it that's bad?" Louise said. Luther dragged the knife across her neck in response and blood started to trickle down into her shirt. John snarled when he saw this.

"I want the gun and my daughter," he demanded. "I'll give you Kate in return."

Luther and John bantered back and forth for a few moments before John demanded that Luther put the Colt down and let Louise go or Kate would get it.

"Fine," Luther said. "Just don't hurt her."

He put the Colt down on the ground and backed up. John slowly dragged Kate forward.

"And Louise," he said.

"You'll get your daughter back once I have Kate," Luther said. John narrowed his eyes.

"You'll get Kate back once I have my daughter," he snapped. Louise hurried to try and untie her wrists, cursing Luther silently for tying them so tight. Her eyes widened when Kate, who had been working on her own bonds, swung around and knocked John back into his truck. Luther shoved Louise backwards towards one of the vampires, who grabbed her, and he punched John so hard that the truck windscreen shattered when John collided with it.

In absolutely perfect timing, an arrow slammed into Alexis' chest and Louise saw Sam running out of the nearby trees, a crossbow in his hands. She took this chance to turn and punch Luther in the face.

"Take that, asshole!" she crowed, finally pulling her hands free of her ropes.

"Lou!" Sam called. Phoebe turned in time to try and catch the machete that he threw to her but she fumbled the catch and just as she picked it up, Luther grabbed her and kicked her, sending her skidding several feet away. Wheezing, she staggered to her feet and turned to hack into Luther with the machete but she froze when she saw that Luther had an arm around Sam's throat and was glaring at her. Great. Now her little brother was a hostage! Louise was really beginning to hate Luther.

"I'll break his neck!" Luther threatened. "Put it down! Now!"

Louise just stared in horror. What was she supposed to do? When she did nothing, Luther tightened his arm around Sam's throat and Sam let out a choked wheeze, trying to draw breath. The sound and sight stabbed deep into Louise's gut, igniting her 'MUST PROTECT SAMMY' instincts.

"Alright!" Louise said quickly, dropping her machete. Luther's arm loosened a fraction, allowing Sam just enough room to breathe.

"Why can't you just leave us alone?" Luther said desperately. "We've got as much right to live as you do!"

Before Louise could start to feel sorry for the asshole, John got Luther's attention and fired the Colt. The bullet struck Luther straight in the forehead, making him let go of Sam, and Louise immediately grabbed her little brother and pulled him behind her. Luther lit up like a Christmas tree and he fell to his knees before slumping down, dead.

"Luther!" Kate cried in horror. Snarling, she started towards John but Bella grabbed her and pulled her into their car. The two cars took off with the surviving vampires, John smiling in satisfaction.

"Come here, Lou," he said. Louise slowly approached him and when she was close enough, John reached out and pulled her into a tight hug, not caring that she was bloodying his jacket. She returned it with a grin.

"Did you give 'em hell while you were there?" he said when they pulled apart.

"Course I did, Dad," Louise grinned. "What sort of a Winchester would I be if I didn't?"

"That's my girl," John said approvingly before letting Sam squeeze the life out of her. But all she could focus on was the proud smile that John had given her. He was proud of her! She'd done something right!

-LW-

"Why's Dad been giving you a look all day?" Louise said as she and Sam packed their things while John was out doing something.

"Disobeyed him," Sam shrugged. "He told me to stay out of the fight. I didn't."

"Yeah and you got your ass kicked," Louise smirked, elbowing Sam. Sam just rolled his eyes and shoved her back.

"You okay?" he said. "Your neck doesn't hurt?"

Louise grimaced and touched her neck, which still stung. She'd been left with a permanent scar thanks to Luther's snack and she was certain that if it was possible for dead people to have the last laugh, Luther definitely had this one.

"Still sports a bit," she said. "Asshole. But hey, he's the one with the bullet lodged in his brain and his girlfriend's the one who has to live without him. We still got each other."

She grinned and ruffled Sam's hair.

"Dean's gonna have a lot to say," Sam said. Louise froze but, to her surprise, the mention of Dean didn't make her want to break down in hysterics again, even if she did still feel a dull stab of pain. "We're gonna get him back, Lou. And he won't shut up about it."

"'You let a vamp get the drop on you?'" Louise said in a mocking imitation of Dean's voice. "'Nice work, Lou! You're the new Bella Swan!' Yeah, he's gonna be a total ass about it."

Before Sam could reply, John walked into the room.

"Sam," he said. Sam turned to face him, while Louise suddenly found finishing her packing very interesting. "You ignored a direct order back there."

"Yes, sir," Sam said stiffly.

"He totally saved our asses, though," Louise muttered. Sam looked at her and when Louise felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickling, she turned to see that John was staring at her.

"You're right, Lou," he said. Louise blinked.

"I – I am?" she spluttered. When was the last time that John had acknowledged that she was right about something?

"It scares the hell outta me, cause you two and Dean are all I've got," John said. "But we're stronger as a team so we go after this thing together. And we'll find Dean and waste those sons of bitches that took him. We're a family and nobody screws with us."

"Yes, sir," Sam and Louise chorused together. Louise didn't know what had happened to make John change his mind but she wasn't going to complain. Those demonic sons of bitches were dead when they met the Winchesters!


	10. The Great Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean finally gets rescued! And Louise nearly throws up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> It's an annoying fine line between deciding which info is important and should be kept and which info I can assume that everybody already knows and dump as irrelevant to the chapter because nothing changes despite Louise being there – hence why I try and summarise when I can.

**Chapter 10. The Great Escape**

"This is going brilliantly," Louise muttered. After revealing that he'd been tracking the demon through the omens that heralded its arrival – temperature fluctuations, freak storms, cattle mutilations – and that these signs had been present in Lawrence a week before Mary and Cathy's deaths, John told Sam and Louise that the next place he'd tracked these signs to was Salvation, Iowa.

On the way to Salvation, Louise had been devastated to hear that Pastor Jim Murphy, who had been a dear friend of theirs, had been found in his church with his throat slit and with traces of sulfur around. What were the demons doing and why had they gone after Pastor Jim?

Pastor Jim's death had just made John all the more determined to take down the demon and in Salvation, after procuring a list of all the babies who would be six months old in the next week, Sam had a vision of the mother of one of them burning on the ceiling, just like Mary had. This allowed them to easily scratch off everyone else on the list, though John hadn't been happy to learn that he was the only one who didn't know about Sam's visions, as evident by the argument he and Sam were currently having.

Just when Louise was contemplating whether she should snap or not, Sam's phone rang. He quickly answered it, looking relieved.

"Hello?" he said. "Who is this?" He paused for a moment, his face tightening. "Meg." Louise and John looked up sharply and Louise felt boiling hot anger begin to simmer inside her at the thought of one of the demons who had kidnapped her older brother.

"Yeah, I remember. Where's Dean? I said, where is he?" Sam listened for a moment, an ugly look on his face, and he looked at John. "I don't know where Dad is." He hesitated for a moment and then gave the phone to John.

"John speaking." John looked down, his face twisting. "Yeah, I'm still here." He blinked. "Caleb?" Sam and Louise's heads whipped around in shock. "He doesn't have anything to do with this! Let him go!"

"No!" Louise murmured, letting her face fall into her hands. Caleb was cool – he didn't deserve to die!

"I don't know what you're talking about." Even from a distance, Louise could hear the man on the other end choking on his own blood and, despite her best efforts, a few tears slipped down her cheeks.

"Caleb! Caleb!" John looked close to tears of his own. "I'm gonna kill you!" He fell silent for a moment, listening. "Okay. Alright, I'll bring the Colt! But you better give Dean back or so help me – no, it's gonna take me a day's drive to get there. That's impossible! I can't get there in time and I'll be damned if airport security will let me get on a plane with a gun!"

The phone was hung up a moment later and John sank down onto one of the beds.

"She wants me to bring the Colt to her or she'll kill anyone who ever even talked to me," John murmured. "I can't do that to them. Especially to…" He murmured a name that sounded vaguely like 'Adam', which ignited Louise's curiosity. Who was Adam? She'd never heard of any of her dad's friends by that name…

"And Dean?" Sam said urgently. "What about Dean?"

"She promised to give Dean back if I hand over the Colt," John said hoarsely. "I don't trust her about as far as I can throw her but – it's Dean's only chance. I have to go to Lincoln."

Sam and Louise started to protest – what about the woman that the demon was coming for that night? – but John overrode their concerns and said that he was going to take a fake gun to give to Meg while they took the real one to kill Yellow-Eyes. They were concerned about what would happen to John when Meg found out that it was a fake but he brushed off their concerns.

"But Dad, you can't go alone!" Louise said. "It's clearly a trap and you don't know how Dean is! What if you can't get out of there with him?"

"Taking down this demon is important, Louise," John said firmly. "I'll be fine. You and Sammy have to –"

"Let me come with you!" Sam burst out. John and Louise stared at him in shock. "Like Louise said, Dean won't be fine! They've had him for months! Let me come and help you get him out of there."

"I'm not letting Lou take on that demon alone," John said.

"I can handle it, Dad!" Louise insisted. "Really! I'll sense it when he arrives, so he won't get the drop on me! And besides, he's interested in Sammy, right? Don't you want to keep Sam away from him?"

John was still staring at her.

"Please, Dad! I can do this!" Louise said. Finally, John looked away and sighed.

"Can't believe I'm doing this," he muttered. "Fine. You sure you got this?"

"Positive," Louise nodded frantically. "Sam'll be safer with you and I won't miss!"

John fixed Louise with a piercing look before digging around in his duffle bag and fishing out the Colt.

"You better not," he said, handing it to her.

-LW-

"Four bullets," Louise murmured, sitting in the Impala and watching the house across the street. "One chance. I can do this. I know I can. I can't miss."

Louise desperately wanted to get the targeted family out of the house then and there but she knew that it would ruin the trap and tip off the demon, so she forced herself to remain in her seat and calmed herself by toying with the Colt. How were Sam and John doing? Were they alive? If she was honest with herself, Louise would have felt better with Sam as backup. But Dean's life was on the line, so John needed backup more than she did! And so what if she messed this up and died? Dean was more valuable anyway! He was the one who always looked out for her and Sam and got them out of any situation!

' _This is gonna be a long night,'_ Louise thought.

-LW-

"Remember," John said to Sam outside the building. "Stay back and out of sight. They're expecting me to come alone. If anything goes wrong, grab Dean and run. Don't worry about me."

"But Dad –" Sam began before shaking his head. "Okay. Just…don't take any risks, okay? Give them the gun, get Dean and go."

John put a hand on Sam's shoulder.

"I'm proud of you, Sammy," he said. "We've had our differences but you turned out fine."

Sam nodded, swallowing heavily.

"Now, come on. Let's go get your brother back."

Sam and John stuck together as they entered the building, until they reached the main area. At John's signal, Sam sank into the shadows and watched his father enter the place.

"You made it," Meg commented. "Too bad, really. I was hoping to kill more of your friends."

While Meg was occupied, Sam slipped through the door. His eyes widened when he saw Meg, with Dean kneeling at her feet, and his stomach churned unpleasantly when he saw that his bruised, bloody brother's head was bowed. What the hell had they done to him?

"You want to skip the small talk?" Meg crossed her arms. "Fine. Hand over the gun."

"If I give you the gun then how am I supposed to get out of here, especially with Dean like that?" John said.

"If you're as good as they say you are, I'm sure you'll figure something out," Meg smirked.

"Maybe I'll just shoot you."

"You wanna shoot me? Go ahead. There's more where I came from."

A hand clamped around Sam's mouth and he let out a surprised, muffled exclamation. An arm snaked around his throat and he was hauled out into the open next to Meg, in clear view of John. His father's eyes immediately snapped to him and Tom removed the vice grip over his mouth to pin his arms to his side.

"Sorry, Dad," he wheezed.

"You shoot me and Sammy gets his little neck snapped," Meg said cheerfully. "You shoot Tom and Dean will be dead before you can even scream."

Sam cursed mentally. Meg's brother! Why didn't he think that Tom would be here?

"Hand over the gun," Tom said, tightening his arm around Sam's throat. Sam cried out in pain. "Come on, John. What've you got to lose?"

-LW-

The first sign Louise had that something was wrong was static started to blare through the radio. She stiffened and bolted upright in her seat as the lights inside the house also started to flicker. And then she felt it. The foulest, most evil presence that she had felt by far oozed into her senses and Louise had to actually throw the Impala door open and lean out of the car, retching and heaving, until she had it under control.

' _There he is!'_ she thought. Fighting back her nausea, Louise slid out of the car and rushed towards the house, where she used a bobby pin she'd found in her pocket to work the lock open. She crept inside but the husband decided to greet her with a nice baseball bat to the face, though he missed, and a wrestling match ensued.

"Get the hell out of my house!" the man yelled. "Monica!"

"Listen to me! You're in danger!" Louise said desperately.

"Yeah, from psychos like you!"

"Is everything okay, Charlie?" a woman called downstairs. Louise took advantage of Charlie's distraction to wrest the bat away and slam his head against the wall, knocking him out.

"Stay away from the nursery!" Louise cried. But she knew that the woman – Monica, she presumed – wouldn't listen, so she hastened to drag Charlie outside and then raced up the stairs, where she stopped dead in her tracks in the doorway. A terrified, screaming Monica was stuck to the ceiling and a dark figure was standing over the baby's crib. It turned to face Louise and her stomach twisted when she saw a pair sickly yellow eyes. Being this close to the demon also made her feel even sicker and Louise tried not to lean against the door frame and show any sign of weakness in front of this son of a bitch.

"Interesting," the demon said in a surprisingly normal male's voice. Louise blinked, having expected a deep, evil voice for some reason. "Didn't think they'd send you. And all alone."

"Doesn't mean that I can't ice you," Louise spat, forcing herself to ignore her rolling stomach and the ugly black smoke curling inside the man's body. "I can see your ugly ass and I'm looking forward to ganking it."

Yellow-Eyes, as Louise decided to call him, actually looked surprised and frowned at her. This split second was all Louise needed to raise the gun and fire. However, she hadn't caught Yellow-Eyes completely off-guard and he moved so that the bullet struck him in the shoulder rather than the heart. Cursing to herself, Louise went to fire the gun again but Yellow-Eyes disappeared in a puff of smoke, his sickening presence also vanishing. Monica was released from the ceiling and landed hard on the floor, gasping.

"Oh, come on! Where the hell did it go?" Louise shouted angrily.

"Rosie!" Monica shrieked. She tried to run to the cot but Louise grabbed her.

"Wait!"

"MY BABY!"

"Go, Monica! I've got the baby!" Louise ran to grab little Rosie, and not a moment too soon – the crib burst into flames as soon as Louise lifted the baby out of it. Louise's eyed widened and she grabbed Monica's wrist and tugged her with new strength, guiding her downstairs and out of the house with little Rosie cradled in her other arm. The nursery exploded at that moment and smoke started to fill the house but, thankfully, Louise and Monica had made it out with Rosie.

"Get away from my family, you bitch!" Charlie growled, pushing himself to his feet.

"No! She saved us, Charlie!" Monica said. Louise offered Rosie to her and she snatched her daughter gratefully, tears starting to stream down her face. "She saved us!" Charlie put his arms around his wife and Rosie and Monica turned to Louise and thanked her profusely.

"I missed," Louise mumbled, feeling the adrenaline drain out of her. "I can't believe I missed…"

She stiffened when she felt the demon's nauseating presence return and she slowly turned to see the outline of a figure standing in the burning nursery, unaffected by the flames. Louise was rooted to the spot as those yellow eyes seemed to stare into her very soul, until a roof beam collapsed and the figure and its presence disappeared.

"I hope Dad and Sammy did better," Louise mumbled to herself, bidding a hasty farewell to Monica and her family.

-LW-

' _This is going well,'_ Sam thought, still struggling against Tom's arms.

"I'm so not in the mood for this!" Meg growled. "I've just been shot!"

"Get over it, Meg," Tom sighed.

"I guess you're lucky the gun wasn't real," John commented dryly. A sudden sound distracted the demons and John and Sam both took their chance; Sam head-butted Tom in the face, wriggling free of his grip, and he and John grabbed Dean and made a run for it. Dean seemed to be drained of all his strength, so Sam held his older brother upright and hauled him along while John hacked at his bonds with his knife and severed them in a heartbeat.

"Come on, Sammy!" John ordered, dropping down through a trapdoor into a hallway. Sam handed Dean to him and then slid down himself and John quickly activated the water pressure, sending streams of holy water raining everywhere and blocking Meg and Tom's paths. This allowed Sam and John enough time to get outside with Dean and when the demons caught up, Sam shouted out the beginning of the exorcism he'd memorised to temporarily disable them.

"Into the car!" John held the latch for the back of the truck open so that Sam could bundle Dean into the back and jump up after him. John then slid into the cab of the truck, starting the ignition and tearing away just as Meg and Tom recovered. Sam could hear Meg's scream of rage even as they got further away from the demons and he held his semi-conscious brother closer to him, feeling weak with relief that they finally had Dean back.

Once they were on the main road, John leaned out of the window.

"Call Lou!" he bellowed at Sam to be heard over the wind. "Tell her to meet us at Bobby's! And test Dean, will you? I don't trust those sons of bitches!"

Sam nodded and pulled a flask of holy water out of his pocket to pour over Dean, who just groaned something under his breath. Once satisfied that Dean was not possessed, Sam took his phone out, dialled Louise's number and held it to his ear while clutching his big brother close to him.


	11. Much Salty, Very Exorcist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise gets down with demons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> This so wasn't my original plan. I just needed some trouble for Louise to run into and, well…the rest wrote itself.

**Chapter 11. Much Salty, Very Exorcist**

The sound of her phone ringing made Louise, still tense from her confrontation with the yellow-eyed demon, jump and she stared at her phone for a moment as though it was a poisonous spider. Shaking her head, she fumbled for her phone and raised it to her ear with a trembling hand.

"Sammy?" she said. "Are you –?"

"We got Dean," Sam said. Louise felt a huge wave of joy and relief crash over her and she nearly lost her focus on the road in front of her. "He's a bit banged up but he's fine. He's sleeping but I can –"

"No," Louise laughed, giddy with happiness. "No, let him sleep. I'll see him when I meet back up with you guys. You all alright?"

"Yeah. We're heading to Bobby's now so Dad told me to tell you to meet us there. Did you – did you get the demon?"

Louise's smile melted like hot butter.

"N-No," she admitted, a lump in her throat. "I nailed him in the shoulder but – I had one job, Sammy! One! And I fucked it up and now he's gonna go and hurt more people!"

"Hey! Hey!" Sam said. "Calm down, Lou! You did the best you could! At least you got him somewhere, right?"

"It won't be good enough for Dad," Louise said bitterly. "I can hear him now. He'll say how he knew he was right about not sending me off alone –"

"If he'd gone alone, there's no way he'd have gotten Dean out of there," Sam said.

"Yeah," Louise said faintly. "He might focus on that. I mean, he _does_ love us more than revenge. Right?"

"Maybe," Sam muttered. "Still doesn't mean that he'll put us first. Look, if he does tear into you then I'll yell right back at him. Okay?"

Louise gave a watery chuckle.

"Okay, Sammy. See you at Bobby's."

She hung up and dropped her phone on the passenger seat of the Impala. Frowning at the nearly empty fuel gauge, she decided to stop at the nearest gas station to fill up. She pulled over five minutes later at an empty station and began to pump fuel into the car when suddenly, she stiffened. Was that…oh, crap! Demons!

"Give me a break!" she muttered under her breath, still filling the car up. So long as she focused on her task, maybe the demons would leave her alone until she had to leave. And if she was going to make her escape, a full tank would be her best friend. Finally, the tank was full and Louise replaced the pump and eyed up the shop, wondering if she should risk going in to pay. Her hand inched towards the Impala when –

"You weren't thinking of leaving without paying, were you?" a familiar voice said. Louise cursed and turned to see Tom standing behind her, grinning widely. "Because that would be stealing, Louise. And stealing is a very bad thing to do."

"Yeah, 'cause I'm sure you haven't done worse," Louise said bitingly, her eyes flicking around for an escape route. Tom shrugged.

"True," he said. "Why don't you come inside and pay? We wouldn't want our perfect little princess to _sin_ , would we?"

"I think I'll pass." Louise turned and tried to open the Impala door but Tom's hand shot out and closed around her wrist. Louise whirled around and punched him in the face but, just like in Chicago, Tom was largely unaffected. Though thankfully, unlike Chicago, he didn't carry her inside or else Louise might have lost any shred of dignity she had left. Instead, he looped an arm around her waist and dragged her inside, Louise bellowing and trying to kick herself free.

"Just calm down, already!" Tom said.

"Hell, no! Let me go, you freak!" Her proximity to Tom was making her stomach churn, though Louise was grateful that she was slowly beginning to be able to bear with this feeling. But no matter how much she struggled, Tom was more powerful and once they were inside, he shoved her to the ground and used his demon powers to pin her to the counter, her arms beside her head as though they were chained. Louise blanched when blood dripped down from the counter onto the ground next to her and she knew that the poor clerk was long gone.

"Louise!" Meg chirped, striding towards the counter from the back of the store. Louise's stomach dropped when she saw that Meg's hands and clothes were covered in blood but Meg just smiled innocently when she noticed Louise's line of sight.

"I think you traumatised her," Tom chuckled.

"I'm still not talking to you!" Meg snapped.

"Aww, trouble in paradise?" Louise said mockingly, her heart hammering. How was she going to get out of this one?

"He shot me in the chest with that fake Colt your father thought he could trick us with!" Meg seethed.

"You're not dead! Just be glad the gun wasn't real!" Tom complained. Meg shot him a bitchface before smiling sweetly at Louise.

"Sorry about the blood, Lou," she said. "Just had to take care of that annoying girl out the back. She wouldn't stop screaming when we slit that other guy's throat!"

Louise felt sick to her stomach but refused to let it show.

"What the hell d'you want?" she said. "Dad and Sam got Dean back. You lost! Boo hoo! Just get over it and leave us alone!"

"We _could_ ," Tom said, pretending to think. "But there's one problem with that. We're demons. Killing and torturing's kind of in our nature."

"And your little family messed up our plan," Meg said, drumming her fingers on the shelf next to her. "You were never supposed to get Dean back. Father was very displeased when he learned about that."

"Father?" Louise frowned.

"Azazel," Tom said. He sighed at the confused look on Louise's face. "The yellow-eyed demon. You really thought he didn't have a name? How rude!"

Louise gulped. Were these two getting revenge on behalf of their father? If so, she really hoped they didn't know about her shooting him in the shoulder…

"Don't think that your father and brothers are safe," Meg said. "They're next on our list. But little ol' Louise, out here all alone…how could we resist?"

"By turning the other way and leaving me alone?" Louise suggested, trying to free herself from her invisible bonds. "That'd be a nice start."

Tom laughed.

"Told you I liked her," he said to Meg, who sniffed and looked away.

"I'm telling Father that you shot me," she said petulantly. "Let's see then if he'll let you have Louise as a reward."

Louise nearly threw up.

"A reward?" she said, trying not to stammer. "You must have done a really crap job to get _me_ as a reward."

"You undersell yourself, Lou," Tom tutted. "I haven't seen anyone this interesting in years. And since you can see my true form…well, I'm certain we can really get to know each other."

Not even wanting to think about what that entailed, Louise tried even harder to get free.

"I'm going to contact Father and see what our instructions are," Meg said. "Don't go anywhere, Lou. The cool kids never leave the party early!"

She turned and strutted back towards the back of the shop. Louise glared defiantly at Tom.

"Let me go," she said.

"No."

"Let me go."

"No."

"Why not? Not like I can kill you."

"No but I like you where you are. Far kinkier that way."

At the mention of sex and herself in the same sentence, Louise felt like emptying her stomach. Tom must have noticed this because his eyes lit up and he knelt down, straddling Louise. Her heart began to race even more and she turned away so that Tom's face wasn't right in hers.

"Do I make you feel uncomfortable?" Tom murmured gleefully. "Are you a prude, princess?"

"Fuck off," Louise snarled. Tom raised his eyebrows.

"That's not very nice," he said. "You need to lighten up."

He forced her head back around and then began to kiss her. Louise could taste hot, burning sulfur in his mouth and, before she hurled, she reared her head back and head-butted Tom right in the face. Swearing, he recoiled and in his brief moment of distraction, Louise's invisible bonds loosened and she took this chance to scramble away.

"Get back here, you bitch!" Tom shouted. Louise hurriedly scanned the shelves, looking for something that could help her. Sauce…packets of chips…salt…salt! Louise quickly grabbed all the containers of salt and darted away, out of sight of Tom. Now what? Could she somehow trap him? Or should she protect herself? Her decision was made when Tom rounded the corner and paused, grinning darkly.

"You're in trouble now, Louise," he sang. Louise ducked away behind a shelf before he could pin her again and then she bolted back to the front of the shop, tore open a container of salt and began to pour it out in a circle, her hands shaking madly. Hearing footsteps behind her, she quickly completed the circle and jumped inside just as Tom drew level with her. He looked down, his eyebrows raised.

"That the best you can do?" he said. "I'll find a way to break that circle. And then you're dead meat. I tried to be nice to you and look where that got me."

"You? Nice?" Louise said with a trembling laugh. "I'll believe that when Hell freezes over." She took a deep breath, collecting her thoughts, and then began to chant. "Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus…"

The effect was instantaneous. Tom howled and clutched at his head, doubling over as the exorcism began to take effect, and he turned and staggered towards the doors. Still chanting, Louise darted over to the doors and laid down a line of salt to stop Tom from escaping.

"What on earth's going on?" Meg was back and she looked pissed. Louise jumped back into her salt circle and continued the exorcism and now, even Meg was affected.

"Shut up! Cut it out!" Tom roared. Louise paused to inhale deeply after her verse and continued, her voice now stronger.

"Ergo, draco maledicte, ecclesiam tuam secure tibi facias libertate servire, te rogamus." She smirked at Tom and Meg. "Au revoir, bitches. Audi nos!"

Tom and Meg threw their heads back, screaming, and twin plumes of black smoke poured out and spiralled into the ground. Their bodies collapsed and Louise quickly stepped out of the circle to check on them. Her heart sank when she felt for a pulse in Tom's vessel but found none, though she was heartened when she saw that Meg's body was still breathing.

"I need a drink," she sighed. "Preferably whiskey."

Casting one last sad look at Tom's body, she bent down to grab Meg and hauled the blonde girl up to her feet. Meg stirred and opened her eyes.

"Where am I?" she croaked, sounding as though her throat was completely dry.

"Somewhere in Nebraska," Louise said. "We need to get out of here. You thirsty?"

Meg nodded, staring around in disbelief. Louise grabbed a few bottles of water from the fridge and, when Meg's stomach growled loudly, also snatched up an armful of food.

"C'mon, before any more sons of bitches come after us," Louise said. Meg followed her out dazedly, blinking rapidly in the sunlight.

"You're…Louise, right?" she said. "Louise Winchester?"

"Yep." Louise held the passenger door open for Meg, who clumsily climbed in, and then she crossed around to the driver's side and slid in. "And you're Meg Masters."

Meg nodded, tearing open a packet of chips and stuffing a handful into her mouth at once.

"Hungry?" Louise said sympathetically. Meg nodded and swallowed.

"Demon didn't need to eat," she said. "I haven't eaten in a year. Ever since…" She took a deep breath, clearly struggling not to cry. "Ever since she stuffed herself down my throat."

"What happened?" Louise said softly as she pulled out of the gas station and turned onto the road.

"I was at college," Meg said after another mouthful of chips. She took a long drink of water. "I was a quiet kid, y'know? Studied a lot, sat in the corner at parties…anyway, I went for a walk one night. Everyone was being so loud and I just needed to clear my head and…I never saw her coming."

Meg's breath hitched.

"Everything's a bit of a haze after that," she said in a choked voice. "I remember some of it…she made me do _awful_ things. I wanted to throw up but I wasn't in control of my body. Sometimes, everything just went black. I treasured those moments. It meant that I didn't have to watch myself k-kill anybody or t-t-torture them."

Meg began to cry. Louise laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, unable to even imagine what the poor girl had gone through.

"I just want to go home," Meg sniffled. "I want to see my parents and my little sister again."

"Massachusetts, right?" Louise said. Meg nodded. "I've gotta go and meet my family in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. I can give you a lift afterwards, if you like?"

Meg frowned at her.

"You'd do that?" she said thickly.

"Of course. It's the least I can do after all the shit you've been through. It'll take a couple of days to get to Andover from Sioux Falls but we'll get there."

Meg smiled gratefully.

"Thank you."

"Hey, can I ask you something? I know that demons don't usually heal their bodies and Meg – the demon – said that Tom shot her in the chest. How are you still alive?"

Meg winced at the bluntness but sighed.

"The demon healed the wound," she said. "Said that it twinged and irritated her and she didn't want to give Tom any satisfaction. I suppose it makes sense…walking around with a hole in your heart can't be easy."

She laughed sardonically and leaned against the side of the Impala, drifting off, before her eyes flew open and she gasped. "I forgot! You can't go to Sioux Falls!"

"Why not?" Louise said suspiciously. Meg gulped and didn't meet her eyes.

"When the demon was inside me…" she began. "She met up with Azazel at some point a few months ago. Yellow-Eyes. And they – they had your brother."

Louise frowned in confusion and horror.

"Dean met Azazel?" she said. "Holy crap, that'd kill him. All he'd want is to gank that yellow-eyed son of a bitch…"

"You don't understand," Meg said frantically. "I know that you faced Azazel in Salvation, so I think Dean was okay by then, but…Azazel told the demon that he was planning on going back. That he was going to possess Dean again, just like he did the first time."

Louise nearly crashed the car.

"The _first_ time? He – he _possessed_ Dean? How long?"

Meg didn't answer.

" _How long_?"

"A little after Dean was caught in Chicago," Meg whispered. "Until – until you saw him in Salvation."

Louise had to pull over or else she would have crashed. She stared at Meg in horror, her mouth wide open.

"So he might be inside Dean," she said quietly, rage colouring her voice, "and my family have no fucking clue?"

Meg nodded miserably. Louise took a deep breath.

"Alright. That son of a bitch is gonna be sorry that he ever messed with the Winchesters."


	12. Meg Masters Finally Gets a BAMF Moment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Exactly what it says on the tin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

**Chapter 12. Meg Masters Finally Gets a BAMF Moment**

It was a four hour drive from Salvation to Sioux Falls but Louise, gripping the steering wheel tightly and full of nervous rage, made the drive in only three and a half. Once outside the salvage yard, she detected the same slimy presence she'd felt in Salvation inside and she was nearly sick then and there.

"He's there," she murmured, wondering when she'd stop feeling the need to hurl around demons. "I can feel him. Dammit."

"Yeah, how do you do that?" Meg frowned. "The demon had no clue how you can see and sense them."

"If I knew, I'd tell you. Believe me." Louise reached into the backseat for her duffle bag and rummaged around until she had the Colt, which she gave to Meg. Meg stared at her in surprise.

"What's this for?" she said nervously, turning the gun over.

"The demon's gonna be in one of them and I can't shoot my family," Louise said. "That's just not how we do things. I want you to stay out here, where you can get away with the Colt if you need to. Take it…God, I don't know where. Just find somewhere where the demon can't get his hands on it."

"And what about you?" Meg said sharply. "You saved my life and I'm s'posed to just run away and let you die?"

"My life?" Louise laughed harshly, feeling numbness settle inside her. "What's my life worth? You've got a whole future ahead of you, Meg. You can bounce back from this, go back to college. Me? I'll be lucky to see my thirties. Hell, I'll probably be lucky to see my twenty seventh birthday next week. If things go south then just…get the hell out, ditch the gun somewhere and live your life. And keep salt and iron on you at all times, and holy water if you can. Demons hate that shit."

Before Meg could reply, Louise slid out of the Impala and shut the driver's door. She approached Bobby's house, feeling sick at the evil oozing out and at what she might find inside. Taking a deep breath and hoping that she wouldn't find any corpses, she raised her fist and knocked on the door. After a moment, it swung open to reveal Sam, who was completely normal.

"Lou!" He pulled her into a tight hug. "Where the hell were you?"

"I'll explain inside," she said, wriggling out of his arms. "Where's Dean? I wanna see him!"

"He's in here." Sam led Louise into the living room, where John was standing by the window, Bobby was sitting in an armchair and Dean was sprawled out on the couch. Louise made a quick scan of the room. John was fine, as was Bobby…but one look at Dean and Louise's heart sank when she saw the dark smoke coiling around inside him. He looked up and around as Louise entered.

"Lou!" He held out his arms. Louise slowly walked over and embraced him, struggling not to be sick. She forced a smile onto her face.

"Hey, Dean!" she chirped, glad when he released her. "What's with the new lazy ass mode?"

"Extended vacation with demons." 'Dean' settled back with a content sigh. "I deserve some time off."

"Where were you, Louise?" John said. "We expected you almost an hour ago."

"Yeah…" Louise launched into her tale. John was livid when he learned that Louise had been cornered by the demons but he gave her a nod and an almost smile when she described how she'd used the salt and exorcism to defeat Meg and Tom. She struggled not to shoot a triumphant look at Azazel, whose smoke she could feel curling around in angry turmoil.

"So Meg Masters is alive?" Sam said with a relieved grin. Louise nodded. "Where is she?"

Louise paused to gather her thoughts.

"Dropped her off on the way," she said. "She said she just wanted to go home and she'd be fine. I offered to give her a lift once I'd met up with you guys back here but…" She shrugged.

"And the Colt?" John demanded. "Sam told me you didn't kill Yellow-Eyes."

"Azazel," Louise said automatically. "That's the name Meg and Tom gave me. I had him cornered, Dad, I swear. I nailed him in the shoulder 'cause he moved and blocked the shot. Then he vanished."

John nodded, though Louise could sense the disappointment in that one action. Her heart sank. Why was her best never good enough?

"Where's the Colt, little sis?" Azazel said. Louise swallowed.

"Not here," she said. "Three bullets left and after running into Meg and Tom, I didn't wanna risk any demons getting it. So I hid it on the way. Tonne of iron and salt – no demons are getting their hands on it."

She prayed to God that if things went wrong, Meg would get the hell out of dodge and hide the Colt somewhere safe.

"Seriously?" Azazel complained. "I was lookin' forward to seeing that thing. A gun that can kill anything!"

"What do we do now, Dad?" Sam said. John sighed.

"We try and track Azazel again," he said. "See if we can find him again and put a bullet through his eyes."

Louise's heart was hammering. Was revealing Azazel now really the best move? But then again, she couldn't let that demon pretend to be her brother any longer! She took a deep breath.

"I…don't think you'll have to worry about finding him again," she mumbled. Everybody stared at her.

"You can sense him?" John said sharply. Louise nodded, trying to ignore the piercing look that Azazel was giving her. "Where is he, Lou?"

Louise gulped and jerked her head at Dean shakily. For a moment, everybody stared at him in shock. John was the first to spring into action but Azazel just chuckled and waved his hand. John, Louise, Bobby and Sam went flying into the walls. Bobby slid down to the ground, unconscious, but the other three remained conscious and pinned to the walls.

"I was beginning to worry, Lou," Azazel chuckled. Louise made a small, horrified noise when she saw that Dean's bright green irises had turned a sickly yellow. "I thought my intel about your powers may have been wrong."

"Nah," Louise said, trying to project an air of false bravado. "Just wanted you to hear about how I beat and exorcised your kids before I pulled your mask off, Old Man Jenkins."

Azazel chuckled and shook his head, though Louise could feel just how pissed he was.

"And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kid," he sighed. "I'll have to punish my son and daughter. No respectable child of mine allows a _human_ to kick their ass…"

"Says a lot about your kids, then," John chuckled. Azazel raised his eyebrows.

"John Winchester," he said. "We finally meet face-to-face. I'd say it's a pleasure but, well…it's really not."

"But the holy water!" Sam said. "I tested Dean and he was fine!"

"He wasn't in Dean at the time," Louise spat. "He was in Salvation, where I shot him in the shoulder. But he was in Dean ever since Chicago."

"My, my," Azazel said. "You're well-informed, Louise."

"Meg told me before I dropped her off. Turns out you can learn a lot when you've got a filthy demon skank inside you for a year."

"Watch your tongue, Louise. There's no need to be rude when we're just having a polite conversation." Azazel approached Louise and brushed a lock of her dark hair behind her ear, making her shudder in revulsion. "I did wonder how you obtained those powers. You're definitely not one of mine."

"One of yours? One of your what?" Louise said. Azazel just shook his head with a smile.

"Tell me," he said. "What do you know about your father?"

Louise blinked.

"What?"

"Her father was an asshole," John growled. "Blond hair, amber eyes, went by the name of Ari…charmed his way into Cathy's life and ditched ass when she got pregnant."

Louise blinked. That was more information about her father than she'd ever known! So she'd gotten her eyes from him?

"Oh, you sly dog," Azazel chuckled. "I didn't know he still had it in him."

"You knew my father?" Louise said immediately. Azazel grinned.

"Of course! We were bosom buddies back in the day! Hell, I was the one who convinced him to become a bad boy! Until Daddy dearest got mad and kicked us out of home…your dad never liked me after that for some reason…"

Louise felt bile rise in her throat. Was it really true?

"My dad…" she said hoarsely. "My dad's a demon?"

To her surprise, Azazel laughed loudly.

"Oh, that'll be the day!" he chortled. "No, sweetheart. You dad's an angel."

-LW-

There was a stunned silence.

"A-Angel?" Louise croaked. "Angels don't exist!"

"Ouch," Azazel pouted. "You really hurt my feelings, Lou!"

"You're a demon," a pale John hissed. "You're the furthest thing from any so-called angels."

"John, John, John," Azazel tutted, slowly sauntering over from Louise. "Read your mythology, John! Once upon a time, there was a group of angels called the Grigori. These angels were commonly known as watcher angels and their job was to watch over humanity because the Big Man Himself was too damn lazy to keep an eye on His little human kids. Ari was one of them. But one day, their wise and powerful leader, Azazel – that's me, in case you didn't know – convinced them that they shouldn't have to put up with being forced to watch over humans like they'd been told."

Sam, Louise and John were staring at Azazel in rapt horror.

"So the angels taught the humans very naughty, forbidden things – like how to make cosmetics and weapons, or read the path of the moon. Daddy got mad and banished His angels far, far away as punishment and they were forced to live on Earth, unable to return to Heaven. Over two hundred Grigori were banished; s'far as I know, only around eight are left."

"But you're a demon!" Sam pointed out.

"Get the man a gold star! No, that was part of my punishment. Stuff happened, I got sent to Hell and then hallelujah, a yellow-eyed demon was born! But enough about me." Azazel turned and grinned at Louise. "Your daddy was very naughty, Louise. Nephilim are forbidden. You shouldn't even exist!"

"Up yours, asshole," Louise snarled, trying not to let on how much his words had just stabbed into her. Azazel grinned again.

"But enough about angels," he said. "Who wants to hear about those winged dicks? No, let's get to the real juicy part: why Mary and Cathy and Jess went up in flames."

Louise stiffened, as did Sam. She saw John's face light up in rage and he struggled furiously to free himself but failed.

"Cathy was just an itty bitty mistake," Azazel said with a mock sad sigh. "If only she'd gotten out…she didn't need to die. But Mary and Jess? They got in the way of my plans for you, Sam, and all of the special children just like you."

Sam had gone very pale.

"Can I let you guys in on a secret?" Azazel said. "Sammy here was planning on proposing to Jess. Went ring shopping and everything. They were gonna get married and settle down and live a happy little mundane life with a mundane job and mundane children. And I couldn't have that. I have plans for him."

Louise stared at her little brother in shock. He really _had_ gone normal! And it sucked that he'd had all of that ripped away from him! It just wasn't fair! What plans could this demon possibly have for him?

"Like what?" Sam said through clenched teeth. Azazel just winked.

"Better not spoil the surprise, Sammy!" he said. "It's not time yet! How about we move back to Lou?" He paused in front of Louise. "You've been a very bad girl, Louise. You exorcised my children and sent them back to Hell. That made me very sad because Hell isn't a very nice place."

"They deserve it," Louise spat. Azazel shook his head and patted her on the cheek.

"No father wants to hear somebody speak ill of his children," he said. "You know, Dean's trapped in here with me. He says to tell you 'hi' before he tears you apart and drinks your blood."

"Let him go or I swear to God –" John forced out. Azazel swung around to face him.

"And what's God gonna do? Huh? I know Him a lot better than you and I can tell you, He doesn't give one shit. You're on your own, Johnny boy." He turned back around to Louise. "I'm a little hungry for some justice today."

He clenched his hand and Louise let out a piercing scream, feeling as though her very insides were tearing themselves to shreds. She barely registered Sam and John yelling at Azazel or the ribbons of blood appearing all over her stomach. All she could feel was deep, intense pain, worse than anything she'd ever felt before, and she tried to talk, to beg him to stop, but she couldn't stop screaming!

"Do you want me to stop, Louise? Do you want me to spare your family the pain of watching you bleed to death?"

Louise couldn't talk. Her throat was raw from her screaming but the pain just wouldn't stop!

"Time's ticking, Lou…better give me an answer!"

"Louise!"

"Just tell me to stop, Louise!"

"STOP IT! PLEASE!" Louise finally managed to cry. The pain faded away and she slumped, sobbing and feeling utterly ashamed at herself for breaking so easily.

"I bet you're feeling like a failure," Azazel said. "Can't look your dad in the eye, can you? Don't want him to know just how much of a failure you are, or see how much of a disappointment he thinks you are!"

"You're not a disappointment, Louise!" John said. "None of you are! Don't listen to him!"

"But it's true!" Azazel said. "It's all here in Dean's noggin. All he ever does is try and protect his baby brother and sister and please his daddy. But it's never enough, is it? No, there's always that little bit better he could have done, or that one tiny detail he didn't get completely right…and yet he still looks up to you. That's some damn good conditioning, Johnny."

John's eyes were glittering with rage.

"I think Dean's feeling a little vengeful," Azazel continued. "And rightly so! He deserves a little satisfaction! I think I'll help him out. How would you like to know just how Mary dearest felt before I stuck her on the ceiling and lit her up like a birthday candle?"

He clenched his fist again. John bellowed when his shirt was immediately painted with streaks of crimson and blood began to spurt out from a gash that opened across his abdomen, in far greater quantities than had been wrung from Louise.

"DAD!" Sam and Louise yelled as John's cries increased in volume. "NO!"

"Dean!" John spluttered through the blood in his mouth. "You fight him, Dean! You fight that monster! You're a Winchester! I'm proud of you, son! You fight that son of a bitch with everything you've got!"

"Yeah! Fight him, Dean!" Sam said.

"Dean! Please!" Louise sobbed.

Azazel seemed to falter. To Louise's utter shock, the sickly yellow faded from his eyes and was replaced with normal green. Now fully in control, Dean stumbled and Sam, Louise and John fell from the walls.

"S-Sammy?" he whispered. "Louise? Dad?"

"Yeah! Fight him, Dean!" Sam said. Dean stared down at John in amazement.

"You're proud of me?" he said.

"Damn right I am!" John was chalk white and Louise was sure that he'd be swaying on the spot if he could stand. "Now you fight that demon and you don't let him take over! You understand?"

"I – Dad, I can't –" Yellow was returning to Dean's eyes and he turned to Sam and Louise, a mixture of a snarl and a grimace on his face. He raised his hand but froze. "No. No! I won't hurt my brother and sister! I won't! You can't make me!"

The yellow faded again and Dean fell to his knees, crying out and clutching at his head.

"Get the hell out of my body, you freak!" he roared. "Leave Sammy and Lou alone!"

But Louise could sense the battling darkness inside him and knew that he wouldn't stand up to Azazel for long. She let out a choked sob, not wanting to see Azazel take over again, and she had to look away when the yellow once again won over the green.

"That's better," Azazel sighed. "Now, where were we?"

He was answered by the sound of a gunshot. Lightning sparked from the bullet wound in his leg and he collapsed, clutching his leg. Louise stared in shock at Meg, who was standing in the doorway with the Colt and a furious look on her face.

"Dean!" Sam shouted. Louise felt a flicker of hope when she saw that the green eyes were back and staring at Meg.

"That the Colt?" Dean panted. Meg nodded. "Good. Shoot me!"

"What?" Sam and Louise exclaimed. John, having slipped into unconsciousness, didn't even know what was going on.

"You heard me!" Dean growled. "That thing's still inside me! Frigging shoot me and put an end to him now!"

"Don't shoot, Meg!" Louise pleaded. "You'll kill Dean!"

"SHOOT ME!" Dean yelled. "Kill me and the demon will die! Please, Meg, kill me!"

"Don't do it, Meg!" Sam was hyperventilating.

"Hurry up! I can't hold him back much longer!" He doubled over and yelled, "NO!" before Azazel's yellow eyes shone through.

"Too late!" Azazel chuckled. He went to hold out his hand.

"Don't even think about it," Meg said coldly. "I will give you exactly three seconds to get the hell out of Dean and get out of here or I will shoot!"

"You're bluffing," Azazel said. "You're just a weak, sobbing female. A pretty little college girl!"

"Who's been possessed for a year," Meg snarled. "By your daughter. But you wouldn't know what it's like to be shoved away in some corner of your own mind, would you?"

"Do it, then," Azazel cackled. "Shoot an innocent man. That's on you, not my daughter."

"I don't even know Dean," Meg said scathingly. "But I know you and you are a despicable, filthy piece of trash. And speaking as someone who's been possessed, I know that Dean would agree with me wholeheartedly when I say that death is way better than being trapped in your own body. I want you to look me in the eye and tell me that I'm not the one person in this room willing to put a bullet right through you, even if Dean will die."

There was a tense silence. Meg narrowed her eyes and tightened her grip on the Colt, ignoring Sam and Louise's horrified looks.

"I'm going to count to three," she said. "And if you're not out of Dean by then, I'll shoot you. And yes, it will haunt me and drive me crazy but you killed Sam and Dean and Louise's moms and Sam's girlfriend and lots of other people, and your daughter is the reason my entire family's worried sick about me and probably thinks I'm dead. I can't take it out on your daughter so you're the next best thing. I'll be avenging a lot of people and saving a lot more."

Azazel stared, torn between calling her bluff and getting the hell out of there. Meg took a step forward.

"One…" she said.

"You wouldn't," Azazel said. She ignored him.

"Two…"

"Are you really that willing to become a murderer? Because there's no going back from that, Meggie."

"Three." Meg's finger tightened on the trigger. Not wanting to take the risk, Azazel fled Dean's body and escaped through the floorboards. The room fell into silence.

"Dean!" Sam and Louise scrambled over to Dean, who was blinking dazedly. "Are you alright?"

"Dad…" Dean murmured. Louise whirled around, seeing the still figure of their dad.

"No! Dad!" she cried, scurrying over to him and, ignoring her bleeding, stabbing wounds, shaking him roughly. "Dad! You gotta wake up!"

John's head lolled. Louise shakily felt for a pulse and her heart stopped when she couldn't find one. Fumbling frantically, she tried to find his carotid pulse and, when that failed, she snatched up his wrist and felt. Nothing.

"Dad! Come on, Dad, you're not dead, you're not! You're alive! Wake up, Dad! Please!"

John didn't move. As Sam quickly crawled over, a horrified look on his face, Louise was hit by the sudden, staggering realisation that he never would wake up again and she let out an agonised, hysterical wail.

"DAD!"


	13. An Abundance of Angels

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another nerdy Sam is brewing and their name is Louise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Originally, John was going to live. But his death was what allowed Sam and Dean to mature and start following their own paths, rather than be stuck listening to him for the rest of their lives. So John had to go :(
> 
> Thanks to tkdgrl223 for your comment :)

**Chapter 13. An Abundance of Angels**

For a while, Louise didn't move. She remained kneeling over the body of her father, sobbing until she couldn't cry anymore, Sam next to her and hugging her. Dean just sat nearby, staring out the window blankly and unable to even look at John's body, and Louise knew that she should go and comfort him but she couldn't drag herself away from John. She could hear Meg and Bobby, who had regained consciousness a short while ago, talking in low voices but she couldn't bring herself to care about what they were saying.

Finally, when Louise physically couldn't cry anymore and just sagged against Sam with her eyes half-closed, she heard footsteps. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she looked up to see Bobby standing over her with an uncharacteristically soft look on his face.

"C'mon, Lou," he said gruffly. "Gotta patch ya up before ya lose too much blood."

Louise idly realised that she was still bleeding, the large wounds on her chest oozing blood. Bobby pulled her up and she swayed on the spot, blinking rapidly as a haze of dizziness and disorientation crashed down on her, only prevented from falling by Bobby's strong grip.

"How can I help?" Meg said immediately as Bobby guided Louise to the armchair and sat her down.

"Take yer shirts off, Lou," Bobby said. Louise automatically moved to obey, not even conscious of her own actions; she was in a trance, just following cues without thought. "Ya sure ya wanna help, girl? Could be ugly."

"Ugly is having a demon inside you for a year and watching her do despicable things with your body," Meg spat, though not rudely. "I've seen more crap than I ever wanted to in this past year. Also, I was studying to be a nurse at college. Granted, a mental ward nurse, but I still know how to help with stuff like this."

Bobby raised his eyebrows, appraising her.

"Alright," he said. "Kit's on the top shelf in the hall cupboard. Go grab it. And grab some good liquor from the kitchen. We're gonna need it."

Meg nodded, immediately turning on her heel and marching out of the room. Louise dumped her leather jacket and bloodstained MCR shirt on the floor before pulling off her blue undershirt, leaving her in just her bra. She didn't feel awkward – her family had seen her in far less – but she did make a move to cover up when Meg returned until she remembered that Meg was a girl and had the same parts.

"This'll hurt a bit," Meg warned, holding a small bottle.

"I know," Louise said dully. She winced when Meg began to apply the antiseptic and her abdomen began to burn and sting but she swallowed her cries and forced herself to suck it up as Meg began to stitch, though she frowned in confusion when little sparks of heat seemed to radiate from the points where Meg's fingers were in contact with her skin.

"You're good at that," Sam commented, leaning over Meg's shoulder.

"Thanks," Meg replied with a tight smile. Nothing more was said afterwards and when Meg finally finished stitching up her wounds, Louise accepted her duffle bag from Sam, who had retrieved it from the Impala, and went to change into clothes that weren't stained with blood. She returned a few minutes later in a fresh black undershirt and black button-down shirt and slid her leather jacket on, grateful that she hadn't gotten any blood on it.

"Where's – where's D-Dad?" she said slowly when she noticed that John's body was missing.

"Bobby and Meg moved him," Sam said, slumped in the armchair. His energy seemed to have worn off and now he looked just as tired and drained as Louise felt. "They're gonna burn him later, when we're all there."

Louise nodded. She spotted Dean on the couch, still staring blankly, and she crossed over, sat down and pulled him into a hug. He flinched away and, a little hurt, Louise went to pull back and leave him be but then, to her immense surprise, Dean grabbed her and tugged her into a tight hug. Louise was stunned when she felt him shaking, which she knew was the closest thing to crying that he'd do when around other people.

"Shh," she murmured, running her fingers up and down his back like she'd always done when they were kids. "It's okay, Dean. You'll be okay."

"Shut up." Dean pulled away and grinned, though Louise could see that it was totally fake. "I'm fine, Lou."

"Dean –"

"I said I'm fine. Get me a drink, would ya?"

Louise wanted to argue but between blood loss and demon confrontations, she barely had enough energy to even stand up and stumble into the kitchen. She rummaged in the cupboards for a bottle of whiskey and poured two glasses, her hands shaking madly. She nearly smashed the bottle when she put it away and, praying that she didn't drop the drinks, carefully picked up the glasses and returned to the living room. Dean nodded approvingly and took his glass from her.

"What about me?" Sam said.

"Hey, you're the only non-damaged one," Louise retorted. "Get your own."

Sam shot her a bitchface and got up to head into the kitchen. Louise took a large swig of her whiskey, the amber liquid burning pleasantly on its way down, and then she shifted closer to Dean and leaned against him.

"If you need to talk, I'm here," she said sleepily.

"I don't."

"Come on, Dean –"

"I'm fine, Lou! So I had a demon up my ass for a few months! Big deal! I'm not the one who was carved up like a turkey!"

"You wouldn't be saying that if I was in your position," Louise snapped but, feeling herself beginning to doze, chose not to argue. Instead, she sat up to put her drink down and then she laid back down, resting her head in Dean's lap, and closed her eyes. As she drifted off, Louise felt fingers begin to comb through her dark hair and she smiled contentedly.

"Love ya, big brother," she yawned.

"Quit being such a chick, Lou," Dean grumbled. "It's embarrassing." But Louise felt him press a soft kiss to her temple and she knew that that was as good as she was going to get.

-LW-

John Winchester's funeral was a quiet affair. The body was already wrapped up thanks to Bobby and so once Sam, Dean and Louise had built a large pyre, they carried John's body together and lifted it up on top. Fighting back tears, Louise opened a container of gasoline and drenched John's body in it before stepping back to let Dean strike a match and drop it onto the white cloth. The body immediately went up in flames and Louise squeezed her eyes shut in a desperate attempt to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall.

"I'm sorry," Meg said quietly. "He sounded like a great man."

"He was an asshole," Louise said with a stuffy laugh. "But yeah, he was great. He didn't deserve to go out like – like that."

Meg just gave her a sad smile and walked off, leaving Louise to wonder why the hell she felt both pleasantly buzzed and like she was going to throw up.

Dean was the first one to leave the burning but that was hardly surprising. Louise had woken up from her post-stitches nap to find her living pillow gone and whenever he wasn't making food or bathroom runs, Dean stayed shut up in the guest room upstairs. Louise knew that playing host to a demon – especially the one that had killed their moms – couldn't have been easy and so she left Dean alone, giving him space rather than pestering him. But it went against every instinct of hers that was screaming to get the hell in there and offer him comfort.

"When do you want that lift?" Louise said to Meg the next day. "Because I've got nothing better to do than to go on a road trip to Massachusetts. Beats sitting around here."

"I think I'll wait," Meg said. Louise stared at her in shock. "Oh, come on, Louise. I had – I had a demon inside me for a year. And I shot a really powerful one in the leg. I can't just go back and pretend that nothing happened."

"But your family?" Louise said.

"A few more days won't hurt, right?" Meg didn't look certain at all and Louise knew that the blonde was dying to see her family.

"You never know. Look, you don't have to pretend that nothing happened. Just – just tell them that you were snatched by a crazy cult and I helped you escape when I got nabbed as well. I'll back you up. And it's not like they're gonna find any evidence otherwise."

"True…" Meg conceded. She sighed. "Just…a few more days? Please? You guys know about this stuff. You get it. I could never tell my family about any of this stuff."

"Fine," Louise said, wondering why she felt a slight, weird sense of elation.

-LW-

To her frustration, Louise found that she couldn't get Azazel's words out of her head ever since their confrontation.

" _Tell me…what do you know about your father?"_

" _We were bosom buddies back in the day! Hell, I was the one who convinced him to become a bad boy!"_

" _Your dad's an angel."_

" _Nephilim are forbidden. You shouldn't even exist!"_

An angel. A fucking angel. Well, why the hell not? If demons and Hell existed, then why not angels and Heaven? And the fact that Azazel used to be an angel…well, it would explain just how he was so powerful, wouldn't it? But Louise's father, an angel? How was that even possible? And why did she have to get one of the asshole angels if this was even true?

"What's up, Lou?" Bobby said when Louise cornered him after lunch.

"I want all the books you have on angels and nephilim," she demanded. Bobby sighed.

"Wondered how long it'd be before ya came knockin'," he said. He jerked his head at the shelves of books. "Knock yerself out."

And so angels became Louise's new obsession. She spent the next few days poring over book after book, trying in vain to find any references to angels. But the vast majority of the books had only fleeting references to angels and that was useless information that didn't even help at all, such as a list of the angels mentioned in the Bible or the different theories surrounding different religions. Louise wanted to throw something. If she had to read one more religious debate…

"Louise?"

Louise blinked and looked up from her book to see Meg standing over her, a nervous look on her face.

"What's up, Meg?"

"I've been thinking. About that lift…d'you think it's possible to cash it in now?"

Louise stared at Meg for a moment.

"Yeah, sure." She marked her place and shut her book, rubbing at her suddenly gritty eyes. "Just lemme talk to Dean first."

Louise trudged up the stairs and paused outside the guest bedroom, her fist raised to knock. After taking a deep breath, Louise rapped on the door.

"Dean?" she said. She heard a loud groan in reply. "Meg wants a lift back to Andover. Can I borrow Baby for a few days?"

"Knock y'self out," Dean slurred. Louise frowned.

"Dean? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine!"

"But –"

"Don't ya have a chick t' drive home?"

Louise wanted desperately to kick down the door and see just how bad Dean was.

"Go away!"

Sighing, she realised that she was only going to make things worse and so she turned and descended the stairs, making a quick stop in the living room to pick up Baby's keys.

"I'm taking Meg home," Louise told Sam, giving him a quick hug. "I'll be a few days. You wanna come?"

"Nah," Sam replied. "I'll stay. Someone has to keep Bobby company."

"I was doin' just fine before ya lot came runnin' back," Bobby grumbled, though there was no heat behind his words.

"Look after yourself, Lou," Sam said. "Take my laptop if you want and keep doing your research on that."

Louise face-palmed.

"Why didn't I think of that?" she muttered.

"Because you stress too much," Sam smirked. While Louise snatched up his laptop and charger, Sam crossed over to Meg and pulled her into a hug. "Stay safe, Meg. I – I'm sorry you got dragged into this."

"Don't be," Meg said with a small smile. "Not your fault. Take care, Sam."

Outside, Louise frowned when she got behind the wheel of Baby. Now that Dean was back, it just didn't feel right to drive his car…

"You okay?" Meg said. Louise started.

"Y-Yeah. I'm fine."

-LW-

A normal drive to Andover from Sioux Falls was nearly twenty four hours, and that wasn't taking into account rest breaks. So Louise estimated that the trip to Andover would take about two days – a day and a half if she really put her foot down – not to mention the fact that she had to drive back. Every few hours, they stopped for a rest and Louise pulled out Sam's laptop on these breaks to connect to whatever shitty Wi-Fi was around and continue her research.

"Hmm," Louise murmured during their rest stop in Janesville, Wisconsin. "Pure celestial being…created by God...carry out His will…yeah, yeah, I know this crap…"

"I think you're pushing yourself too hard," Meg said, sliding back into the passenger seat with an armful of snacks. "You need to take a break."

"My father is an _angel_!" Louise said, slamming the laptop shut. "A freaking angel! White robe, fluffy wings, pretty halo…I need to know as much about them as I can!"

"Yeah but you're burning yourself out," Meg pointed out. Louise gave her such a severe look that the blonde winced. "Okay. Look. How about I drive and you keep researching, if it's that important to you?"

Louise bit her lip. On the one hand, she was really tempted to take up that offer. But on the other hand, Dean would know if someone else drove his car. He had a special sense for that and Louise did _not_ want to risk her big brother's wrath, especially with how messed up he already was.

"It's okay," she finally said. "I can wait."

-LW-

The duo stopped for the night in Cleveland, Ohio, in the first crappy motel that Louise found. While Meg snored lightly in the next bed, Louise's face was illuminated by the light of the laptop screen as she continued to research.

"Oooh, a list," she murmured, letting out a massive yawn and clicking on the link. She skimmed through the list, murmuring the names of random angels. "Ambriel…Anael, or Haniel…Barachiel…Castiel…wait, he also goes by Cassiel…dammit, how many different names do these sons of bitches have?"

Meg snorted in the next bed. Louise froze, worried that the blonde had woken up, but Meg just turned over and snoozed on.

"Blah, blah, blah…archangels?"

Louise clicked on the link and frowned at the screen.

"Most powerful of the angels…personifications of the very grace of God…vary based on source and religion…okay, this is actually cool. So there are four in Christianity: Michael, Lucifer, Raphael and Gabriel. Wait, the _Devil_ was an angel? Great, Satan's my uncle…"

Louise took a sip from the can of energy drink on the table next to her, slightly disturbed at how easily she'd accepted Azazel's words as truth. A part of her wanted to deny it, to say that Azazel was lying and she was just a weirdo psychic…but it felt right. Deep down, Louise knew that there was some truth to the demon's words, though she also knew that there was still a chance that he _had_ been lying.

"But in other religions, there are seven. The names of the angels vary but the most common group is Michael, Lucifer, Raphael, Raguel, Remiel, Gabriel and Sariel. Man, I need to buy myself a Bible one of these days…and now these guys are boring."

Louise backtracked to the page of angels and clicked on random ones, reading the information that she was linked to.

"Anael…sometimes listed as an archangel…also known as Haniel or Hanael…blah, blah, boring planet and mystical symbolism info…'Joy of God' or 'the Grace of God'…ruler of the Second Heaven…what the hell's the Second Heaven? Isn't Heaven just one place full of clouds and happiness and eternal peace?"

Shaking her head, Louise backtracked again and clicked on another random name.

"Castiel…also commonly known as Cassiel…sometimes listed as an archangel…geez, can't these people just pick seven archangels and stick to it? Angel of solitude and tears…watches events unfold without interfering…presides over the deaths of kings…man, this guy sounds cheerful. Something about the Seventh Heaven…okay, I really need to look up these Heaven things. But apparently he watches over humans and protects from afar, so he can't be that bad?"

Louise shrugged and clicked back.

"Okay, just one more. Sariel…also known as Saraqael or Suriel…a watcher angel in some legends but prevalently an archangel…how the hell do you mix up Grigori and archangel? As a Grigori, he taught men the path of the moon…though it says here that he went by Suriel when he did that. Maybe Suriel's a different angel? As an archangel, he is also known as Saraqael…set over spirits who sin…concerned with the fate of angels who violate divine law…yeah, this is getting boring now."

Letting out another long yawn, Louise closed the laptop and set it carefully on the floor before lying back down and snuggling under the covers. Before drifting off, she realised that she should have seen if she could look up the identity of her father based on the name she knew (Ari) and the fact that he was a Grigori.

' _Nah,'_ Louise finally decided. _'If he really cared, he wouldn't have run off. I'm not wasting my energy on him. John w-was my father, and that's that.'_


	14. Chance Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise encounters a very interesting person.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own SPN.

**Chapter 14. Chance Meeting**

“This it?” Louise said, pulling over across the road from a modest two-storey house. After setting off from Cleveland at five that morning, they finally made it to Andover late that afternoon. Louise had relied on Meg for directions to her house once they hit Andover and now, sitting across from it, Louise felt a strange sense of loss. She’d grown to like non-demon Meg over the past week and a bit and she didn’t want to say goodbye just yet.

“Yeah,” Meg said quietly. She didn’t make a move to get out of the car, instead just remaining in her seat and staring. “I can’t believe it. A whole year…I never even thought I’d make it back home.”

“Well, you did,” Louise said firmly. “And…thanks. Y’know, for being a badass bitch. I don’t know if I would’ve been able to threaten Azazel into leaving my brother…”

Meg just smiled.

“I wouldn’t really have killed Dean,” she admitted. “I was just trying to scare Azazel into leaving. I’m glad it worked because I don’t know what I’d have done if it didn’t.”

“I’m glad too,” Louise agreed. “But what if…what if it hadn’t been Azazel? What if it had been Meg? Not you – the demon.”

“I would’ve shot her,” Meg said without hesitation. “She’s different. She rode around in my body for a whole year.”

Louise grimaced.

“Fair enough,” she said. They sat in silence for a moment. “Hey, give me your phone.”

“Why?” Meg said curiously, handing it over. Louise slid it open and entered Meg’s dial pad before punching in her phone number.

“There’s my number if you need anything,” Louise said, saving the number. “And I’ll put Sam, Dean and Bobby’s in as well, in case I don’t answer.”

She saved a few more numbers and then handed the phone back to Meg. Meg smiled brilliantly and it occurred to Louise that this was the biggest smile that she’d ever seen on Meg’s face, not counting the demon.

“Thank you so much, Louise. You and your brothers.” Her smile faded a little. “When that demon was inside me…I kept screaming and begging for people to realise and help me. But no one did. I thought I was a goner when Tom aimed that gun at me but it wasn’t the Colt…and then they trapped you and you managed to exorcise them. Just…thanks.”

She leaned over and pulled Louise into a hug. Louise felt warm and fuzzy as she hugged Meg back and then, to her utter surprise, Meg pulled back and kissed her on the lips. It was just a quick, chaste peck and Louise felt a mixture of excited heat and slight disgust. She was speechless when Meg pulled away, looking anywhere but Louise.

“Thanks,” Meg said quickly. Before Louise could say anything, Meg pushed her car door open and slid out of the car. Louise watched the blonde cross the road and knock on the door. It swung open to reveal a woman with greying blonde hair, who just froze and stared at Meg like an angel had appeared on her doorstep. The next moment, Meg had been enveloped in a tight hug by the sobbing woman and Louise started the car back up and took off, a small grin on her face.

She’d been kissed by Meg. And…she’d sort of liked it, even if it had taken that to realise that her weird feelings over the past few days hadn’t been romantic. Go figure.

-LW-

With nobody to regulate her breaks, Louise made it to Mentor, Ohio, at around midnight in one flat journey. She wanted to continue driving through the night, intent on getting back to Sam and Dean as soon as possible, but she felt her eyelids drooping and knew that Dean would kill her and then salt and burn her ghost if she crashed his precious Baby, so she decided to stop on the side of the road and try and get some sleep, not wanting to waste money on a motel. She had a restless night, only getting five hours of sleep, but it was enough to refresh her and she left Mentor at around five thirty.

It was while stopping in Schaumburg, Illinois, that Louise became side-tracked. She stopped at a small diner for lunch and while munching on a burger, fries and a small salad (because dammit, Sam had corrupted her into at least trying not to drop dead of a heart attack at age fifty) when her attention was caught by the newspaper that the man nearby was reading.

 _THIRD CHILD MISSING THIS WEEK_ , the headline read, positioned over the picture of a small blonde girl. Louise frowned. A possible case?

“Excuse me?” she said. The man peered over his paper, frowning. “Could I borrow that?”

She got a weird stare in response but the man eventually nodded and handed his paper over. Louise skimmed through the article, frowning. Three children missing in a week, with no possible clue as to who their kidnappers could be. That sounded fishy enough, so Louise swiped a napkin, borrowed a pen from the man and scribbled down several details, including the names of the missing children.

“Thanks,” she said, returning the paper and pen. She stuffed the napkin into her pocket, swiped up her burger and left after dropping some bills onto the table. Out at the Impala, she pulled out her phone.

“Lou,” Sam said when he answered. “Where are you?”

“Schaumburg, Illinois,” Louise replied. “I dropped Meg off yesterday. Listen, I’m going to be a few more days.”

“Why?”

“I found a case. Three children vanished in Pontiac, Illinois. There’s no sign of their attackers and all of the kids are small, blonde girls and ten years or younger.”

“That could just be a normal sicko.”

“True. But we’ve taken cases with less, haven’t we?”

“Yeah, fair enough.”

“How’s Dean?”

“He’s…normal. Drinking beer, cracking jokes, being a smartass…I don’t know if that’s good or not. No one bounces back that quickly, not even Dean.”

“You talking about me, Sammy?” Louise heard Dean bellow in the background. She grinned.

“Hold on, he wants to speak.” The phone crackled for a few moments.

“What’s up, baby sis?” Dean said.

“I’m only six months younger!”

“Details. How’s Baby?”

“Not a scratch,” Louise reported proudly.

“Good. ‘Cause we’re stuck with a crappy old camper van that makes me look like a soccer mom, so you’d better treat Baby like a queen. So, you got a case?”

“Yeah. Pontiac, Illinois. You’re welcome to come.”

“Yeah, no. I ain’t driving more than I have to in this bucket of bolts.”

Louise heard voices in the background and frowned.

“Where are you?”

“Nebraska. Found a message on one of Dad’s old phones from one of his old friends, so we checked it out. Her name’s Ellen Harvelle and you do _not_ want to piss her off.”

Louise heard a sharp, muffled female voice say something.

“She’s got a cute daughter called Jo and there’s some guy called Ash hanging around. Apparently, he’s a genius.”

“That so?”

“Yeah. He looks like a Lynyrd Skynyrd reject but he’s rigging up something to help track Azazel.”

Louise felt as though she’d been punched in the gut.

“He can do that?” she said breathlessly.

“Yep. He said to give him fifty one hours. His words, by the way. And then once we’ve found the ugly son of a bitch, we’ll get the Colt back out and bury that last bullet right between his eyes.”

Louise laughed.

“That’s great, Dean! So, are you okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I just mean, after Azazel and all –”

“I’m fine, Lou.” Dean’s voice was still cheerful but it suddenly became very frosty. “You toddle off on your little case and we’ll see you when you get back. Try not to die.”

“But Dean –”

“See ya!” He hung up and Louise stared at her phone for a moment blankly.

“Was that what I was like after Chicago?” she muttered, throwing her phone on the seat next to her.

-LW-

The trip to Pontiac only took an hour and a half and it was around two in the afternoon when Louise finally arrived. Her first order of business was to check into a motel and change into her black skirt and blazer then she pulled up outside the house of the first victim. She sifted through her small box of fake IDs. Who was she going to be? Could she pull off a solo FBI agent? Because they usually worked in pairs, didn’t they?

 _‘I could be a reporter,’_ Louise thought before immediately dismissing it. _‘Nah. People hate the media and I can’t ask the same questions. Ah, fuck it.’_

Selecting her FBI badge, Louise shoved her box back into its hiding place and got out of the car. She walked up to the house briskly, mentally celebrating her decision to never under any circumstances wear high heels; they may have been more professional but they hurt like a bitch. When she knocked on the door, she was answered by a woman with lank brown hair and puffy eyes.

“Julia Freeman?” Louise said. She held up her badge and the woman’s eyes bulged. “Agent Urie. I’m here about your daughter, Diana.”

Julia Freeman swallowed, nodded and moved aside to let Louise in.

“I didn’t know that it was a matter for the FBI,” she said hoarsely, leading Louise to the living room.

“There’s a similar pattern here to other cases,” Louise said smoothly, sitting down in the armchair. “We just want to see whether or not we’re dealing with the same person or somebody similar.”

Julia nodded and sat down on the sofa.

“What do you want to know?” she said.

“I know that Diana is blonde and nine years old,” Louise said, not mentioning that she’d just jacked the information from the article. “And I know that she fits the pattern of young girls disappearing around here. What can you tell me about the day she disappeared?”

Julia took a shuddering breath.

“We were at the playground,” she said. “I was watching Di and her friends. Then Casey – one of her friends – asked me for a drink. I had a bag of juice poppers in case the girls got thirsty. You know what girls are like.”

Louise nodded, waiting for Julia to continue.

“I only turned my back for one second and she was gone! I thought she’d just wandered off at first and I called for her to come back. But she didn’t. So I began to worry and when I went to look for her…” Julia started to sob. “S-She was gone.”

Louise wanted to reach out and hug the poor woman but forced herself to stay in her FBI guise.

“Two other girls have gone missing in a similar manner,” she said, pulling two pieces of newspaper out of her pocket. She smoothed down the articles and handed them to Julia. “Did Diana know these two girls?”

Julia frowned.

“I don’t think so,” she said. “She’s not friends with either of them and she hasn’t mentioned them to me.”

“One more thing and then I’ll be off,” Louise said. “Were there any odd occurrences at the playground? Cold spots, odd smells…anything?”

Julia stared at Louise as though she’d been asked to do the tango.

“No. Why would there be?”

“No reason. I just had to make sure.” Louise stood up. “Thank you for your time, Mrs Freeman.”

Once outside, Louise sighed. That was a big bag of nothing! She was certain that she’d have to check the playground but first, she wanted to question the families of the other two girls.

Verity Smith’s family lived a two minute drive away and they were far less cooperative than Julia had been.

“Where’s your partner?” Prudence Smith demanded when Louise presented her badge. “You lot work in pairs, don’t you?”

“Agent Way was feeling unwell, so he stayed behind in our room while I investigated,” Louise lied quickly. “But rest assured, the both of us will be working as hard as we can to find your daughter.”

Prudence squinted at the badge before snorting and retreating into the house. The door was left open, so Louise just walked in and closed it behind her.

“Who the hell’s she?” Leo Smith said, jerking his head at Louise when she entered the living room.

“FBI,” Prudence replied. “Says she wants to talk to us about Verity.”

“S’pose you’d better have a seat, then,” Leo muttered, nodding at an armchair. Louise sat down, wishing she was questioning Julia again. The lady may have been tearful and distraught but at least she was still polite.

“Your daughter fits the pattern of blonde girls under the age of ten being abducted,” Louise said. “I just want to know what happened the day of her abduction.”

“She was at a birthday party at the playground,” Prudence said. “I wanted to take her home early because Janice had also invited that horrid David Thomas. He and his family…well, they’re not the sort that I want my daughter associating with.”

Louise nodded, trying not to punch the woman in the face. She hated these kinds of people!

“I called out to Verity to come,” Prudence continued. “But she didn’t listen. I went looking for her in case David had done something awful to her but I couldn’t find her.”

Louise resisted the urge to point out that this David was a kid and most likely couldn’t do anything worse than pulling little girls’ hair.

 “So Leo helped me search. But we found nothing, so we went straight to the police. You say that my Verity fits a pattern?”

“Yeah,” Louise nodded, fumbling around in her pockets for the newspaper clippings. “I wanted to ask if Verity knew either of these other girls.”

“Never heard of that one,” Prudence said dismissively, immediately handing an article back. “And I know Diana Freeman’s mother. Horrid, impure woman. Why, just the other day, I saw her leaving Harry Jones’ house! But then, he’s not the first one.”

Louise tried not to show just how terribly uninterested she was.

“But no, Verity doesn’t know Diana. Is that all? I’m expecting guests in half an hour and an FBI agent in my home will not do wonders for my image.”

“Did you notice any cold spots or odd smells or anything unusual?” Louise asked. She got blank stares in response. “Right. Well, I’ll be off. If you have any information –”

“Yes, yes, we’ll call. Goodbye, Agent Urie. Thank you for stopping by.”

Louise couldn’t get out of the house quick enough.

“Whenever I think I want an apple pie life…” she muttered to herself. “Okay, last one. Hopefully, these guys are a lot nicer or I’ll throw something.”

The last house was a ten minute drive away. Louise approached the door and knocked, hoping that she wouldn’t get another Smith family. The door was answered by a man with black hair, blue eyes and a grief-stricken look on his face.

“Yes?” he said.

“James Novak? I’m Agent Urie, FBI. I’d like to ask a few questions about your daughter, Claire Novak.”


	15. Civilian Casualties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise and her new friends get into a bit of a pickle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> No, I really couldn't help myself.

**Chapter 15. Civilian Casualties**

For a moment, the man stared at her. He seemed to quickly gather his thoughts and he shook his head.

"S-Sure." He moved aside to let her in. "And just Jimmy is fine."

Louise followed Jimmy down the hall to the living room. A blonde woman was reading a book and she looked up as Jimmy and Louise entered.

"Who's that, Jimmy?" The woman sounded as though she'd been crying very recently.

"Agent Urie," Jimmy replied in an equally flat voice. "From the FBI. She wants to talk to us about Claire. Agent, this is my wife, Amelia."

Louise nodded at Amelia as she sat down.

"Can I get you anything?" Amelia said, practically throwing her book aside. "Tea? Coffee?"

"No, thanks," Louise said. Interviewing was draining and she wanted to get it over and done with, not to mention that she didn't want to take advantage of the Novaks. Now, if that bitch Prudence had offered…

"What do you want to know about Claire?" Jimmy asked.

"Claire was the third girl taken," Louise said, pulling out the newspaper clippings. "The other girls are Diana Freeman and Verity Smith. As far as I know, the only connection between these girls is that they're blonde, female and all under the age of ten. What happened on the day that she disappeared?"

Jimmy and Amelia looked at each other for a moment.

"She was at the playground," Amelia said. Louise frowned. So all three girls were at the playground on the day of their abduction! "Jimmy was at work, so it was just me and her. I called out to her and said that we were leaving and she told me that she was coming. I turned away to get my keys out of my bag and…and she was gone."

Amelia sniffled. Louise gave her a sympathetic look.

"I shouldn't have taken my eyes off her!" Amelia whispered. "And now she's gone and it's my fault!"

"It's not," Louise said firmly. "There was a case that my bro – that two of my colleagues and I were on. One of them stayed behind to confront the offenders to give me and our other colleague a chance to escape and he was abducted. We only just rescued him. I blamed myself for months because I knew that our attackers were coming and we were still caught. So believe me when I say that it was not your fault."

Amelia nodded, though she didn't look convinced.

"Were there any unusual signs, Amelia?" Louise said. "Strange smells, cold spots…?"

Amelia frowned.

"Not that I can think of," she said. Louise sighed. Was this really just a case of a sicko kidnapping children?

"That's all I need for now," she said, standing up. "If you remember anything else –"

"We'll call you," Jimmy promised. Louise nodded.

"Thank you for your time."

Jimmy showed her out and, before he shut the door, he said, "Agent Urie?"

Louise turned around. Jimmy swallowed.

"Please. Promise me you'll find my daughter."

And with that, Louise knew that she couldn't leave until she'd found the girls.

"I'll do my best, Jimmy."

-LW-

"Well, this is a big fat load of nothing," Louise muttered, staring at the jungle gym at the playground. But really, what had she expected to find? Convenient footsteps leading to the kidnapper's hideout? A neon sign? "Why'd I have to stick my nose in? Now I'm probably just gonna fuck up the real authorities…"

Louise turned to leave, when something caught her eye. The ground of the playground was covered in dark brown bark but there, gleaming dully, was something small and white. Louise bent down and picked it up and her eyes widened when she saw what it was.

"Son of a bitch," she swore, staring at the fang in her hand. "But the kids were taken during the day…how the fuck did this guy not burn to a crisp?"

Louise had to go back and interview the families again. And once she'd spoken to the three families, she learned that Diana, Verity and Claire had all been at the playground during the early evening, when the sun was still up and it was still light but it wasn't burning hot and strong. Would a vampire chance the sunlight during dusk?

"Okay, so I know that it's a vamp," Louise said to herself. "Now how do I find its lair?"

Louise decided to poke around a bit more. As the sun went down, maybe the freak would show itself – and, with her senses, Louise would immediately know who the vampire was. As the sun set, all the children on the playground started to go home and Louise, though she felt horrible for thinking so, was a little disappointed that none of them had been snatched. So maybe the vampire hadn't decided to show his ugly mug…

Wait. No. There, on the edges of her senses – she'd felt that kind of presence before!

' _There he is!'_  she thought. She patted her leather jacket and the waistband of her slacks before realising that she hadn't brought her machete with her.

"Oh, son of a bitch!" she cursed. "How could I forget my machete?" John would have killed her if he was alive! Louise eyed up the Impala in the distance, wondering if she could make it before the vampire attacked, when she stiffened. Another presence had appeared a short distance from the first.

' _Dammit! Of course there are two!'_

Now that the odds were even more against her, Louise made her decision: she turned and bolted for the Impala. The attack came so fast that she wasn't expecting it. Something blurry shot out of the trees and launched itself at her and Louise grunted when she hit the ground, a thin man on top of her. He hissed at her, his fangs sliding out, and she tried to buck him off but he was too strong. Grunting, she resorted to leaning up and head-butting it. It toppled off her, growling loudly, and she tried to clamber to her feet but she was grabbed from behind by the other vampire.

"Let me go, you son of a bitch!" Louise elbowed the vampire in the side and pulled free but the first vampire had recovered and he tackled her to the ground once again. Louise's head was slammed into the hard earth and she blinked dazedly, black spots dancing in her vision. Her head was smashed into the ground again and then everything went black.

-LW-

When she came to, the first thing that Louise was aware of was that her head was pounding. She then realised that her hands were bound behind her back tightly and that she was in a small room with a bunch of unconscious people. She recognised little Diana, Claire and Verity, all bundled into a corner in a heap of blonde hair and blood-caked skin and clothes. To her utter surprise, when she looked to her left she saw Jimmy and Amelia, their hands also tied behind their backs. What the hell were they doing here?

"Dammit," Louise muttered. Now, not only did she have to rescue the girls but she had to save Jimmy and Amelia as well! Her attention was suddenly caught by two horrible presences appearing in her senses and she was just thankful that normal monsters didn't make her want to hurl like demons did. A door opened and the vampires entered the room, grinning when they saw that Louise was awake.

"Evenin', sunshine!" the man drawled.

"Bite me," Louise snapped, immediately wincing at her choice of words. The female's eyes lit up.

"That can be arranged," she purred.

"Why? I don't exactly fit your choice of victims," Louise said. "Nice move, by the way. Go for all the little girls. You sure you're right in the head?"

"You're the one with the dirty mind," the male pointed out. Louise saw Jimmy and Amelia begin to stir out of the corner of her eyes and she hoped that they wouldn't completely freak out when they came to.

"And you're the one who wants to lop our heads off," the female added.

"Well, good work! You brought me right to you!" Louise said mockingly.

"Only because we need to get you out of the way," the male said. "We don't need no hunters on our case."

"Then you should have left me," Louise said. "I had no idea where your little hideout was."

"But what would be the fun in that?" the male grinned. Louise could see that Jimmy and Amelia were fully awake and were frozen in terror, staring at the vampires with wide eyes.

"After all, our little ones need a meal, don't they?" the female said. "And there are three of you! One for each!"

Louise blinked and frowned.

"What?" she said.

"Every family needs kids!" the female trilled. "And soon, we'll have the perfect child!"

"Child?" Louise shifted to look at the unconscious girls. "You've got three there!"

"But they're not perfect!" the female said irritably. "Our daughter has to be the perfect child! These ones aren't good enough! We'll still take them out of the goodness of our hearts but they're not perfect!"

"It's okay, Agnes," the male said soothingly. "Come on. Let's go and try again."

Agnes nodded.

"We'll be back soon," she said, suddenly cheerful again. "Don't go anywhere!"

The vampires were gone in the blink of an eye. Louise exhaled deeply and began to feel around in her pockets for her knife.

"What in the world are those things?" Amelia whispered, her eyes wide.

"Vampires," Louise grunted, awkwardly moving to her right pocket after finding nothing in her left one.

"Vam – no, they're not real!"

"Then you're having a very vivid dream. They're real, Amelia. Monsters exist. They're what my brothers and I have been hunting our whole lives. Where the fuck is my knife?"

"You're not FBI, are you?" Jimmy said quietly, his eyes glued on the unconscious girls.

"What gave it away?" Louise muttered. She hissed triumphantly when her fingers closed around her knife and she carefully drew it out of her pocket and began to saw at her bonds. "My real name's Louise Winchester."

"Win –?"

"Yes, Dean Winchester is my brother," Louise snapped. "Cousin, technically. But he's not a murderer. He was framed. It was a shifter. Gimme a minute, I'm getting there with these damn ropes."

"A shifter?" Amelia laughed hysterically. "Okay, why not?"

There was silence.

"Why are you guys even here?" Louise said. "Last I checked, you're not little blonde girls."

"We were in the park." Amelia spoke quickly and fearfully. "We wanted to take another look and see if we could find anything to help find our daughter. Then we saw those – those  _things_  attack you and they saw us and attacked us!"

"Witnesses," Louise sighed. "Great. Nothing better."

"So, what else exists?" Jimmy looked both eagerly curious and like he was about to faint. "Werewolves?"

"Yep."

"Ghosts?"

"If they didn't exist, we'd be out of a job."

"D-Demons?"

Even Amelia paused in her hysterics at that. Louise's jaw set and she swallowed.

"Yeah," she said softly. "One of them killed my mom and Sam and Dean's mom when we were kids. Then he killed Sam's girlfriend last year and possessed Dean for months and killed our dad a few weeks ago. I managed to exorcise his son and daughter and the girl his daughter was possessing…well, she's not fine but she's alive and back with her family."

Louise looked away. Jimmy and Amelia looked very overwhelmed – not that Louise could blame them. Jimmy then asked the question that he looked like he'd been dying to ask.

"What about angels?"

"Jimmy," Amelia said sharply.

"I don't know," Louise said. A loop of rope snapped, leaving three more to cut through. "The demon – Azazel – he said that they exist. Apparently, he was one before he became a demon. The leader of the Grigori."

"Watcher angels," Jimmy said immediately. Louise raised her eyebrows.

"You religious?"

"Very. You?"

"Nope. Just a crap tonne of research. Azazel said – he said that my father was one of them. A Grigori. And I dunno if he's right or if he was lying but it'd explain a hell of a lot about me. So I went researching."

"You're – you're a nephil?" Jimmy's eyes were wide. "They're forbidden by God! It's in the Bible!"

"Yeah, I know. I've read those verses. But hey, I never asked for my deadbeat dad to be an angel. If Azazel was telling the truth and angels even exist, that is. I mean, I want to believe that they exist. I really do. But they've never been there for me and my family. They weren't there when Aunt Mary burned on Sammy's ceiling and Mom was killed getting me out. They weren't there when Dad raised us like soldiers rather than kids. They weren't there when Sam walked out on us. They weren't there when his girlfriend burned as well! And they sure as hell weren't there when Meg was possessed or when Azazel possessed Dean and killed our dad!"

Louise didn't even realise that she was yelling until she'd stopped. In the corner, the girls began to stir.

"I'm sorry." And Jimmy truly did look sorry, which just made Louise swallow and look away. "I can't imagine what I'd have done if I'd lived your life. But you need to have faith, Louise. You need to have faith that someone is looking out for you."

"How?" Louise choked, feeling her eyes begin to sting. "How can I? Nobody cares, Jimmy! If they did, they would have cared when that demon forced Dean to kill our dad! He won't talk about it and he pretends that he's fine but he's not! And if someone did care then an innocent girl wouldn't have been possessed! Hell, the guy that Tom possessed didn't even survive!"

Louise looked down, tears sliding down her cheeks.

"Nobody cares," she said thickly. "It's just me and my brothers and I'll be damned if anything happens to them."

Finally, at long last, the last loop of rope broke and her bonds fell away. Louise scrambled over to free Amelia and Jimmy and once Jimmy was free, he pulled Louise into a hug.

"Somebody does care," he said firmly. "I care. Amelia cares."

Amelia nodded and rushed over to the girls. Louise gave the blonde her knife as she passed and Amelia smiled weakly in thanks.

"But that's the point of faith," Jimmy continued. "Faith isn't about expecting help when you're in trouble and believing when the good things happen and then forgetting about them the rest of the time. Faith is about believing even in the most difficult of times, even when you think that nobody's there. Because as long as you believe that someone's always there, you will always get help."

Louise was reminded vividly of Layla Rourke's words, back after dealing with the bound reaper.

"You've always pulled through, haven't you? You've had your brothers and they've had you. It could have been far worse. Somebody does care about you."

"Mommy!" Louise heard in the background. She sniffled and gave Jimmy a watery smile.

"Thanks," she said stuffily. "I just – it's so easy to give up and not care, y'know?"

"I do know. But have faith and it'll all be okay."

"Daddy!" One of the blonde girls threw herself at Jimmy, who picked her up and hugged her back tightly.

"Claire!" he exclaimed happily. Amelia came over to share the hug, leaving Louise to smile wistfully and go to check on Verity and Diana.

"Are you two okay?" she asked.

"I think so," Diana mumbled, her green eyes wide. "What were those monsters?"

"Vampires."

"But vampires don't exist! Mommy says that they're silly stories!" Verity said imperiously.

"Then how d'you explain the sharp fangs?" Louise said dryly. Her head was pounding, the vampires were out nabbing a fourth girl and she was really not in the mood to deal with kids. Where was Dean and his kid skills when she needed them? "Monsters exist, kid. I hunt them. Hence why I'm here. Now, c'mon. We've gotta leave before they come back."

"But they said they were going out to get another girl!" Claire piped up, still nestled securely in her parents' arms. "We're not gonna leave her, are we?"

"No," Louise said, resisting the urge to massage her skull. "But to kill vampires, you need to cut their heads off. And that's all I've got."

She pointed to her knife. Amelia looked at it and quickly threw it back.

"I've got a few machetes in the trunk of the car," Louise continued. "If we can get there, you guys can get to safety and –"

She stiffened as her senses immediately came to life. It was difficult to describe how she could sense monsters; her best try was a sort of tingling in the back of her mind that grew stronger as the monsters got closer.

"Dammit, they're back," she muttered. "C'mon, we've gotta –"

"Leaving so soon?" Agnes' voice said. Louise closed her eyes, mentally counted to ten and then turned around.

"Well, fuck."

 


	16. Heroes Always Get Remembered

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise remembers just why she hates vampires so damn much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Points to anyone who knows which song the title is from.

**Chapter 16. Heroes Always Get Remembered**

Agnes and her partner were standing in the doorway. In her arms, Agnes had a little girl with pale blonde hair and Diana let out a shriek.

"Millie! That's my best friend!"

"Okay, okay, put the little girl down," Louise said, her eyes flitting around for a weapon. "We get it. You're bloodsucking freaks with mental issues."

"Issues? We're not the one with issues!" the male said vehemently. "You hunters are! You're the reason for this happening! You're why we're trying to rebuild our family! If you lot hadn't –"

"Kenny, shush!" Agnes growled. The cogs in Louise's head began to turn.

"So you two had a kid," she said. Her eyes landed on a sharp piece of metal in the corner and she carefully elbowed Verity and gestured. "A blonde girl, right? But hunters killed her. So now you're looking for another daughter."

"What?" Verity hissed. Louise pointed a little more violently.

"Metal," she whispered. Verity must have understood because she began to inch away.

"It's all your fault!" Kenny yelled. "Crystal was innocent! She didn't deserve to have her head hacked off by so-called heroes!"

"Whoa, whoa, we never called ourselves heroes." Louise tried to placate the vampires until she could lop their heads off. Verity was very carefully shifting towards the corner, her grey eyes glued on the vampires. "But you were killing people, weren't you? Snatching them and draining their blood."

"We needed to eat!" Agnes spat, dropping Millie on the ground. Millie groaned softly but didn't wake. "You lot have your burgers and greasy, fatty food and every other kind of food you can imagine! We only drink blood! And if a few humans have to suffer then so be it!"

"There are blood banks," Louise pointed out. "Nobody's making you kidnap people and draw attention to yourselves. And we're hunters. When we hear about people getting hurt, we have to step in. It's our job."

"Your job cost us our daughter!" Kenny said wildly. "So now these people will lose _their_ daughters! We'll have a perfect little family and be together again!"

Louise blinked.

"You guys are seriously fucked up," she said. She noticed Verity slowly bend down and pick up the piece of metal. "Verity, now!"

Her shout startled the vampires. In that split second, Verity threw the metal and Louise caught it, tackled Agnes to the ground and raised the metal above her head. It was sharp enough that it only took two chops to cut off her head.

"AGNES!" Kenny howled, having recovered from his shock. His fangs slid out and his eyes flashed silver. "You killed my wife! I'll kill you! I'll drain you dry!"

He lunged at Louise. Louise dodged and jumped on him from behind, sending him crashing to the floor. She raised the metal to cut off his head but Kenny was far quicker than Agnes had been and he punched her in the face. While Louise was dazed, Kenny bucked her off and then flipped her so that he was straddling her.

"You're dead, bitch," he spat. Louise tried to force him off but not only was he too strong, her vision was hazy and her head was throbbing. Kenny bent down and she let out an involuntary scream when his fangs pierced her throat, in the exact same place that Luther's had.

"Get off me!" she shrieked, trying to push and kick him off. But Kenny was feeding and he wasn't about to let anybody stop him and, as he drained more and more blood, Louise felt herself begin to grow lightheaded.

' _So this is why people don't hunt alone,'_ she thought woozily. She was beginning to wonder if Jimmy and Amelia had gotten the girls to safety and if this was how her life was going to end when she heard somebody shout, "Hey!"

Kenny lifted his head to look around. Louise winced as her neck continued to sting and she tried to punch the vampire but her vision was swimming too much. But then Amelia was looming up behind Kenny, a snarl on her face, and she swung the piece of metal as hard as she could. It sliced through Kenny's neck and stuck halfway through but Amelia wasn't even fazed; she just shoved Kenny to the ground and forced the metal all the way through, completely decapitating him.

"Don't you ever touch my daughter again," Amelia hissed. Louise didn't know whether the fact that Kenny was dead enhanced or dampened the moment. Silence fell on the room.

"We did it," Louise said, blinking rapidly. "Someone help me up?"

Jimmy quickly crossed over and crouched down, heaving her to her feet. Louise immediately swayed on her feet and would have fallen over if Jimmy hadn't grabbed her.

"You okay?" he said.

"Gimme a few minutes and I will be," Louise said, clutching onto him for support until her balance slowly began to return. "Not the first time I've been low on blood. And not the first time one of those sons of bitches has gone for me either."

"You said a bad word!" Verity gasped.

"I'm a twenty seven year old woman who hunts monsters for a living," Louise said, finally able to stand up without toppling over. "I think I've earned the right to say bad words."

"Can we go?" Diana said, eyeing the vampires and looking like she was going to throw up.

"Yeah, good idea. C'mon."

Louise led the way out of the building, even though she had no idea where they were.

"Man, sometimes I wish Dean was here. He's good with kids."

-LW-

"You're not going to talk to her?" Jimmy said as they watched Julia squeeze the life out of Diana, while the rest of them watched from the end of the street. Julia feverishly pressed kisses to the top of Diana's head and bundled her inside, closing the door behind her.

"No," Louise said. "No point. I'm not really FBI and I don't want to have to answer a tonne of awkward questions. Besides, Diana's back and safe. That's all that matters."

"You don't even want gratitude?" Amelia said in surprise as they slid back into the Impala. With so many people, Louise had allowed Jimmy and Amelia to squeeze into the front with Claire, letting Diana, Millie and Verity sit in the back and she was grateful that the space in between the driver and shotgun seats could be used as a seat in a pinch. But now that Diana was home, Claire got into the back with Millie and Verity.

"We do get gratitude," Louise said as she navigated the dark streets of Pontiac. "There's always going to be innocent people dragged into it and they always thank us when we gank the monsters. But honestly? Seeing the people we've saved is reward enough."

"But you don't ask for thanks?" Claire said quietly, letting out a yawn. "If _I_ was a monster hunter then _I_ would want people to thank me!"

"Claire," Amelia reprimanded, though it was more automatic than anything.

"Why should I ask for gratitude?"

"Because you're a hero!"

Louise blinked, an unfamiliar feeling curling in her stomach. Did Claire really think that?

"I'm not, Claire," she denied uncomfortably. "My brothers and I are just trying to keep as many people as possible from getting killed. We've done some pretty crappy stuff. We're just trying to make the best out of our lives."

"Then you're a hero," Claire insisted as they turned into Millie's street. Louise paused for a moment, closing her eyes.

"There you go, Millie," she said.

"Thank you, miss!" Millie hopped out of the car and Amelia, who was in the shotgun seat, got out to get into the back and let Jimmy ride shotgun. Louise watched Millie's father pick her up and hold her close and then she smiled sadly and started the car back up.

"I'm glad you see it that way, Claire," Louise said softly.

"I do too," Verity piped up. "You're a superhero! You saved us!"

"It's my job," Louise shrugged. Why did these girls think that she was some sort of hero? She was just a woman with issues, doing the only thing she knew how to do! She didn't even know _how_ to be normal!

They drove in silence after that until they got to Verity's street. Louise was expecting Prudence and Leo to just hug Verity and usher her inside but, to her utter surprise, Prudence began to sob and lifted Verity up to pepper her with kisses. Leo wrapped his arms around his wife and daughter, a wide smile on his face. Louise watched them, a strange look on her face. Huh. Maybe she'd judged them too quickly.

"What are you going to do once you drop us off?" Jimmy asked when Louise began to drive again. Louise shrugged.

"I've got a motel room," she said. "I'll catch some sleep and head back to our uncle's place tomorrow. It's a nine hour drive but I can probably make it in seven or eight."

"No," Amelia said firmly. Louise blinked. "Come and stay with us tonight. It's too late for dinner but I'm sure we can fix something up. You can have breakfast and head off after that."

Louise froze. That…was one of the kindest offers she'd ever been given. But she couldn't accept. She couldn't impose on the Novaks!

"It's cool," she said. "Motels aren't _that_ bad. And I haven't maxed out my fake credit card yet so I'll be good for food."

"You saved our daughter." There was a steely undertone to Amelia's voice. "She's our only child. You have no idea how much she means to us. A bed and food is really the least we can do and it's far from enough."

Louise felt her resolve weakening. That _did_ sound tempting…and maybe, just for one night, she could pretend that she was part of a normal life. Was that really so bad? Was it really too much to ask for?

"Okay," she finally conceded. "Just let me go and get my stuff."

Amelia nodded with a satisfied smile and began to stroke Claire's hair, while her daughter snoozed against her. Louise turned around to drive back to the motel and it only took two minutes to pack all of her stuff and bundle it into the trunk. Then she slipped back into the driver's seat and they were heading back towards the Novaks' house.

"Jimmy will show you to the guest room," Amelia said as Louise pulled her duffle bag out of the trunk. "I've got to get Claire to bed."

"I don't wanna," Claire mumbled, fighting against her mother's arms. "'M hungry, Mommy."

Amelia sighed but clearly, her daughter's ordeal was weighing on her because she nodded without much of a fight.

"Go and sit down in the kitchen, Claire," she said. Claire nodded and stumbled inside, yawning and wiping her eyes. Amelia turned to Jimmy and Louise. "I'll make us some sandwiches. You can take a shower if you want, Louise. You don't look too good."

"Neither do you," Louise pointed out, gesturing to Amelia's clothes. They were bloody from decapitating Kenny but Amelia just pursed her lips and looked down at herself.

"I'll just throw these clothes out," she said. "You're covered in blood and you look like you're dead on your feet. Take as long as you need."

Louise blinked as she followed Jimmy and Amelia inside. Why were these people being so kind to her? All she'd done was save their daughter, like she'd done for countless other people!

"Up here," Jimmy said, gesturing to the stairs. Louise followed him up and he led her to a door, which opened into a bedroom with a neatly made bed, a chest of drawers and a vanity. "The bathroom's across the hall and towels are in the linen closet. If you need anything, just ask."

He stood there for a minute as Louise rummaged around in her bag for clean clothes and then, to Louise's surprise, pulled her into a hug just like he'd done at the vampires' lair. Louise stiffened.

"Thank you," he said. "You really are a hero, no matter what you think. And your brothers sound just as heroic. For Dean to continue hunting even though he's wanted and he was possessed…and for Sam to continue helping people even though he lost his girlfriend…most people would have gone on a single-minded revenge mission."

"Yeah," Louise said softly, thinking of John. She struggled to hold back tears. "Thanks, Jimmy."

Jimmy pulled back with a smile and then left the room. Louise found a clean Fall Out Boy shirt to wear to bed, along with a pair of black sweatpants, and she grabbed the first towel she found in the closet and locked herself in the bathroom. It took her a minute to hit the right temperature and then she stepped under the hot spray, smoothing her straight bangs back off her forehead.

What would John have said? She'd fucked up massively. Not only had she forgotten her machete but she'd worked alone – not that it ever stopped him – and she'd let a vampire feed from her. Louise knew that she shouldn't beat herself up; she'd saved the people and killed the monsters. But if John had been here, he would have told her that that wasn't good enough.

"How can you forget your _weapon_ , of all things?" John's voice demanded in her head. "You let those vampires get away to nab another girl. You should've freed yourself faster and stopped them! Millie could've been spared all this crap! You let another child lose their innocence! And how could you let that vampire feed from you? I didn't raise you to be that weak!"

"STOP IT!" she bellowed, clutching at her wet hair. She sank to her knees, finally breaking down properly for the first time since John had died, and it wasn't until now that she realised just how much she'd been holding back and cramming inside herself. "What do you _want_? You're gone! You're dead! Just leave me alone!"

Louise sobbed even harder, tugging on her hair. She let everything spill out – all of her pain, all of her tears – and she didn't look up until she heard someone knocking on the door.

"Are you okay?" Amelia's voice called.

"F-Fine!" Louise replied. She pushed herself to her feet, let the water rain onto her face until she was certain that all traces of her meltdown were gone and then turned the water off. Grabbing her towel, she rubbed at her hair quickly before drying her body and then wrapping her hair in the towel to make a 'towel hat'. She smiled faintly as she dressed, remembering the times when Sam and Dean would harass her for it because they could never figure out how she made those hats.

Amelia was gone by the time Louise emerged from the bathroom. Louise returned to the guest room to shove her bloody clothes into the duffle bag and then she pulled the towel off her head and headed downstairs, the towel draped over her arm.

"You took a while," Amelia said when she saw Louise standing in the doorway of the dining room awkwardly. "I was worried."

"I'm okay," Louise said, yawning. "Where do you want this?"

"I'll take it." Amelia grabbed the towel from Louise. "You just sit down and eat. Claire and Jimmy are already in bed but I told them that I would wait up for you."

Feeling guilty for keeping Amelia up, Louise scarfed down her sandwiches as quickly as possible. She had just finished her first one when Amelia returned to the dining room and took a seat.

"I just can't believe it," Amelia said, shaking her head. "Monsters are real. Vampires exist. My daughter was taken by a vampire."

"It's a lot to wrap your head around," Louise said sympathetically, biting into her next sandwich. She nearly grimaced at the mayo but Amelia had been kind enough to bust her ass making these sandwiches for her – and besides, she was _starving_. So Louise ignored the tang of the mayo and ploughed into the sandwich.

"What am I going to do?" Amelia continued. "We have to keep Claire safe. What if more vampires come for us?"

"That's unlikely," Louise said. "Looks like it was just the two of them in that nest. But if they do come, hack their heads off. Dead man's blood is also really poisonous to them."

Amelia immediately looked sick. Louise laughed softly and took another bite of her sandwich.

"You got any paper? I'll write this stuff down."

Amelia went to get a piece of paper and a pen and Louise spent the next few minutes scribbling down as much information as she could remember about all of the creatures she knew; ghosts, werewolves, demons, vampires and so on. Amelia looked like she was going to faint when she took the paper back.

"Think of it this way," Louise said as she finished her sandwich. "You're safer knowing this stuff. Now you know how to defend yourself."

Amelia didn't look like she agreed. Louise stood up, picking up her plate.

"Thanks, Amelia." She took her plate into the kitchen. "Er, I can –"

"Go to bed, Louise. You lost a lot of blood today."

Louise nodded, leaving her plate in the sink. She gave Amelia one last reassuring smile before quietly trudging up the stairs, so as not to wake Jimmy or Claire, and she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillows in the guest room.

-LW-

"Yes, they're dead," Louise said the next morning, her phone to her ear. "I'm just about to leave. No, no one died except the vampires! I'm not incompetent! And yes, Baby is fine! Do you care about anything except your car? _Goodbye_ , Dean!"

Louise hung up and shoved her phone into her pocket. She smiled at Jimmy, Amelia and Claire, who had come outside to say goodbye to her.

"Thanks so much," she said. "Stay safe. You've got that list, so you should know what to do if you run into anything else."

To her enormous surprise, Claire broke away from her parents and threw her arms around Louise's waist.

"Thank you!" the little girl said. Louise just stood there stiffly, frozen in surprise. Claire pulled away with a smile and scurried back to Jimmy and Amelia.

"Look after yourself," Amelia said, giving Louise a hug of her own. Louise nodded.

"Thanks."

When Amelia stepped aside, Jimmy gave Louise a hug.

"Have faith, Louise," he said. "You'll pull through anything so long as you believe that you will."

Louise felt a small smile spread across her face.

"Thanks, Jimmy." She got into the Impala and pulled out of the driveway, still smiling. Jimmy was right. She had her brothers and she had Bobby. Maybe somebody really was looking out for her?


	17. Spidey Senses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Turns out that even hunting can produce its fair share of narrow-minded assholes. And Sam and Louise are not impressed with this one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> To anyone who guessed 'Emperor's New Clothes' by Panic! At the Disco from last chapter's question, you get points and virtual cookies! 'Heroes always get remembered, but you know legends never die.'
> 
> Also, I've finished chapter 64 of the series overall (chapter 4, fic 3) and I have to say, fic 3 is really dark. So if torture and dark themes aren't for you then fair warning, you probably won't want to read that.

**Chapter 17. Spidey Senses**

"Told ya we should've come as FBI," Louise smirked as they left the cop station. In the process of investigating a case in Red Lodge, where two people had been found headless and a handful of cows had been split open and drained of blood, they had posed as reporters to interview the sheriff. The idiot was of pretty much no help and he freaked out and kicked them out of his office when they asked about the cattle mutilations.

"Shut up, Lou," Sam and Dean chorused. Louise just grinned.

Their next stop was at the hospital morgue, this time disguised as interns. To get the intern on duty out of their hair, they pretended that the doctor was back from vacation and pissed and wanting to see him. He couldn't get out of there quick enough.

"Glad that the doctor is actually a douche or we'd be toast," Louise commented as they pulled on gloves.

"So, we're thinking cultists or something?" Sam said.

"Yeah," Dean nodded. "Those Satanists in Florida marked their victims, didn't they?"

Sam nodded.

"What happens in Florida stays in Florida," Louise snickered as they rolled out the compartment with the corpse they were looking for. The headless body had a box between its legs.

"Open it," Dean said.

"You open it," Sam retorted.

"Wusses," Louise snorted, grabbing the box and carrying it over to a table where she opened it. "Well, no pentagrams carved into this chick's forehead."

"Poor girl," Sam said.

"We should look in her mouth," Louise suggested, an evil grin on her face at the look on Sam and Dean's faces. "Maybe those weirdoes stuffed something down her throat. You know, like in Silence of the Lambs."

"I worry about you sometimes, Lou," Dean said. "But I just grow prouder when you make references like that."

"Go ahead, Dean," Sam invited.

"No, you go ahead," Dean replied immediately.

"What a bunch of babies," Louise declared, shoving Dean aside. "Let's take a look at this chick!"

"You're far too comfortable with this for my liking, Lou," a grossed-out Sam said as Louise poked a finger in the girl's mouth.

"Dude, I took Biology in high school," Louise smirked, wiggling her finger in the girl's throat. "My teachers always said I was too enthusiastic about dissection for my own good. Hey look, no gag reflex!"

"I can't imagine why," Dean muttered. "Wait, hold up. Lou, lift her lip again." Louise quickly did as he asked and he pointed. "Is that a hole or something?"

"Aw, crap," Louise mumbled, knowing exactly what they were dealing with. She pressed on the girl's gums and a narrow, sharp fang slid out. "Oh, come on! I just handled Pontiac a week ago!"

"Well, this changes everything," Sam commented. Louise nodded and then noticed Dean staring at a random body tray, his eyes slightly wide and his jaw working. She nudged him and was about to ask if he was okay but he just shook his head and grinned.

"Let's go hunt some vamps!" he said.

-LW-

Later that night, the three of them were in a bar, hunting for information. While Louise stayed behind at their table, Sam and Dean questioned the bartender about any rowdy group of people that might be around who slept all day and partied all night. Louise grimaced and took a swig of her drink. There was a vampire in here – she could feel it – but there were so many people around that trying to zero in on the vamp was nearly impossible. If she could see it like she could demons then there wouldn't be a problem!

"Fantastic," Louise sighed. "Thank you, weird nephilim senses, for being completely useless when I need you."

"Fifty bucks," Dean complained as he and Sam returned. "It took fifty bucks. And all he told us was that a group of people have leased some Barker farm and he's had to kick them out of here a few times."

"Nice detective work, Dean," Louise smirked. Suddenly, she felt a prickling sensation on the back of her neck, as though she was being watched, and she shot Sam and Dean a quick look. Their eyes widened, indicating that they were aware of their shadow as well.

"C'mon," Dean muttered and they left.

"I think there's something stuck to my shoe," Louise said, pulling her foot up and checking under her shoe to make completely sure that the other two knew they were being followed.

"I know that, Lou," Dean said in exasperation. "You've had that piece of crap stuck to it for ages. I can't believe you didn't notice before."

"Let's just go and we can take care of it later," Sam said. They walked down the street and turned into an alley, the guy in question following them as they thought. They turned a corner and then doubled back and snuck around behind their stalker. The man paused when he rounded the corner and looked around warily and the next minute, he was pinned to the wall with Dean's knife at his throat.

"Smile," Dean ordered.

"What?" the man said.

"I wanna check that you're brushing twice a day and not leaving any blood in your teeth," Louise said sarcastically.

"Oh, for the love of – I'm not a vampire so can you please jab that toothpick somewhere else?" the man snapped, though his voice was soft and calm. The other three shared surprised looks. "Yeah, I heard you guys in there."

"What do you know about vampires?" Sam frowned.

"How to kill 'em, just like you. Seriously, that knife's not doing wonders for my complexion." The man started to pull away but Dean just dug the knife deeper into his throat. "Fine!" He pulled his lip back to reveal normal gums. "See? No fangs. Happy?"

"Very." Dean relented with the knife and Louise noticed him shoot the blade an odd look and swallow before stowing it away quickly. She frowned. What the hell was going on with her brother?

"Now, who the hell are you three?"

-LW-

Louise nearly died in awe when the man, who introduced himself as Gordon Walker, showed them the massive weapons arsenal in his car. He was the one behind the dead vampires and he revealed that he'd hunted with John once and he knew a lot about them ("Word travels fast. You know how hunters talk." But Dean just grumpily denied this and Gordon commented that there was a lot their dad hadn't told them).

"The Barker farm's a bust, by the way," Gordon told them. "Just a bunch of hippie freaks. Look, guys, I got this covered. Real pleasure meeting you all and I'm sure you're very capable hunters but this has been my thing for a year and I work alone. But if you're lookin' for a hunt, I hear there's a chupacabra two states over."

Louise just crossed her arms. She'd liked Gordon at first but anyone who insinuated that she was anything less than a good hunter immediately went into her bad books and Gordon's tone when calling them capable hunters had been anything but complimentary. If anything, it had been patronising.

"I handled a vamp hunt in Illinois the other day," she said. "Alone. And that was two vamps, not a whole nest like this. You're gonna get yourself killed."

"Good on you, Louise," Gordon smiled. His tone had just become more patronising and Louise scowled, clenching her fists. "But I got this. I've been hunting since before you were firing your first gun. Here, I'll buy you all a drink when I get back, okay? Nice meeting you lot."

"Arrogant ass," Louise muttered as Gordon got into his car and drove off.

"So you didn't like him either?" Sam said, looking relieved.

"He insulted my hunting skills. Twice. I'm far from the best hunter out there but you don't insult my skills. Also, he spoke to me like I was a kid."

"He's not that bad!" Dean said. Louise just stared at him and shook her head.

The trio wasn't about to just let the hunt go. So they followed Gordon to the nearby sawmill and arrived just in time to stop the vampire there decapitating him with an electric saw. While Sam pulled Gordon to safety, Louise tackled the vampire to the ground and Dean used the saw to cut his head off.

"Gross!" Louise sputtered, her face dripping with blood. She quickly wiped her mouth to prevent any blood from getting inside.

"You didn't say that at the morgue!" Dean said.

"Yeah but I didn't have vampire blood splattered across my face!" Louise replied.

"So, I guess I owe you all that drink," Gordon piped up. Sam, Dean and Louise stared at him.

-LW-

At least Louise seemed to have found another difference between her and Dean. While the four of them sat in the bar later that night, Gordon shouting them a second round of drinks, Dean did nothing but gush over Gordon and how amazing the dark-skinned man was. Louise, on the other hand, couldn't have been more bored if she'd tried – heck, her only source of amusement was glaring at anybody who looked at her the wrong way. Louise had absolutely no clue how Dean could just sleep with random women at any time and enjoy it because at the thought of herself having sex with anybody, she immediately felt like throwing up.

' _There's probably something wrong with me,'_ Louise thought glumly, scowling at Sam when he asked if she was okay.

"A toast," Gordon said, raising his shot glass. "Another one bites the dust."

He and Dean drank a toast. Sam, his arms crossed, didn't even touch his glass and Louise glared down at her drink balefully, as though it contained all the answers in the universe, before snorting darkly and shoving it aside. She didn't even know why she was in such a foul mood but she really didn't care.

"That was beautiful," Gordon said. When he and Dean started to wax poetic about their kill and joke around, Louise started to feel uncomfortable and she shared a look with Dean. Sure, she'd kill a vampire instantly – they were monsters and one less monster meant more people saved – but it was another matter to laugh about it and act like they'd found the Holy Grail.

"Aw, lighten up, Sammy," Gordon said.

"Only Dean and Louise call me that," Sam snapped.

"Okay," Gordon said in a placating voice. "I didn't mean to offend you. Just celebrating a job well done."

"Yeah, I'm kinda with Sam on this one," Louise said, swirling her drink dully. "I'll kill a monster without a second thought but decapitations aren't exactly something to party about."

Out of the corner of her eye, Louise saw Dean staring at his reflection in the glass with a slightly terrified look. She opened her mouth to ask what was wrong but Dean noticed her looking and gave her a cocky grin.

"It's not like it was human," Gordon said. "It's good that you're doing the job but you gotta learn to have fun on it."

"That's what I've been telling Sam!" Dean agreed. "Lou's alright if it's personal but Sammy just doesn't know how to have fun! You could learn a thing or two from this guy."

Louise was now starting to feel very uncomfortable. Maybe it was the alcohol in her system or how eager Gordon was to kill stuff but there was something… _off_ about him.

"I'll just go back to the motel and not be a party pooper," Sam said. "You coming, Lou?"

"Sure." Louise stood up, swigging the last of her drink. "Thanks for the drinks, Gordon."

"Any time, Louise." Gordon gave her a small smile. "Enjoy the job, alright?"

"Lou's older so she has privileges." Dean threw the keys to Louise and then went back to hero-worshipping Gordon, while Sam and Louise left the bar.

"There's something about Gordon," Louise muttered once they were outside and at the Impala. "But honestly, I'd have left anyway. If I have to put up with one more second of Dean trying to get into Gordon's pants…"

Sam waited until the car doors were shut before letting out a long, loud laugh.

"Hilarious, Lou, but Dean doesn't swing that way," he chuckled. "The number of women he 'conquers'…"

"Oh, please," Louise scoffed, starting the car up. "He swings at least a little the other way too. Did you _see_ the way he looked at that dude back in Seattle when he was seventeen? I mean, he'd never admit it but we all know that our big bro would've dropped his pants and wet himself if that guy had said anything to him."

Sam slumped against the seat, howling with laughter. Grinning widely, Louise started the car and set off back to the motel. It'd been ages since Sam had laughed like that and she was very proud that she'd been the one to cause it, even if it was at their older brother's expense.

"But I'm worried," she said once Sam's laughs had died down. "I've been trying to get him to talk for a month now. Sometimes, he talks in his sleep and it's stuff like 'no' and 'don't hurt them' and 'leave Sammy and Lou alone'. And sometimes, he just stares at something like it's trying to kill him and he brushes me off whenever I try to get him to talk about it. And now he's laughing and drinking merrily and acting…well, more normal than usual? Is it just me or is this gonna bite us in the ass?"

"What can we do, Lou?" Sam shrugged helplessly. "If Dean doesn't want to talk, he won't. You know that."

"Yeah," Louise sighed. "I know. Doesn't mean that I'm not worried about him, though."

Once back at the motel, Sam and Louise shut the door behind them and then Sam pulled out his phone while Louise contemplated locking the door to piss off their older brother. She decided against it; the last thing she needed was a drunk Dean hammering on the door all night, or doing something nasty to her if he managed to pick the lock.

"Hey, Ellen, it's Sam and Louise Winchester," Sam said, pressing a button to put the call on speaker.

"It's good to hear from you, Sam," Ellen said warmly. "Nice to meet you, Louise. I'm Ellen Harvelle."

"Yeah, Sam and Dean told me about you," Louise said with a small smile.

"Can't wait to meet you in person. You're all okay, aren't you?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Sam said. "We just have a question."

"Shoot."

"You ever hear of someone called Gordon Walker?"

"Yeah. He's a damn good hunter. Why you asking, sweetie?"

"We ran into him on a hunt and now we're sorta working with him."

"Don't do that." Ellen's voice was suddenly very sharp.

"But you just said –"

"Yeah, he's a good hunter. And Hannibal Lecter's a good psychiatrist."

"Please don't tell me that we've just met the Lecter of the hunting business…" Louise said slowly.

"Afraid so, hon." Ellen's voice was grim. "He's a danger to everyone and everything he meets. You guys just get out of there and let him handle the case, okay?"

"Ellen –"

"No, Sam. Listen to what I'm saying, alright?"

"Okay." Sam hung up and he and Louise exchanged long-suffering looks.

"Dean knows how to pick 'em, doesn't he?" Louise sighed. "He just _had_ to fall in love with the psychopath…"

There was silence for a moment.

"Want a drink?" Sam said. Louise nodded and they went for a walk to the vending machine to buy two sodas. Taking a long swig from her can, Louise froze when a presence niggled at her senses and she exchanged a look with Sam, who stared around cautiously.

"You getting something?" he whispered. Louise nodded, taking another drink to cover this movement, before slowly lowering her drink and scanning the area until Sam unlocked their door. They bolted inside and slammed the door shut, relieved. However, this relief was short-lived as Louise's senses flared up suddenly.

"Sam!" she exclaimed. Sam whirled around, just as a dark figure jumped him. While he knocked his attacker away, Louise was grabbed by a second assailant and she elbowed him as hard as she could. A loud crash made Louise look around to see Sam crumpling to the ground and that fatal moment that she was distracted in her horror proved to be her undoing. Something heavy cracked across her skull, there was a flash of white and she dropped like a puppet whose strings had been cut.


	18. Will the Real Hannibal Please Stand Up?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean has a chick flick moment - but he'll never admit it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> This chapter turned out way longer than expected. But is anyone really complaining?
> 
> And the scene at the end? I'm not shoving Sam and Dean's relationship aside but the way I see it, Louise is a girl and pretty close to his age. Dean's more likely to have a chick flick moment in front of an actual chick and though Louise is tough, I see her as the most emotional out of the lot, not to mention that she's seen all the crap Dean's done for Sam and she's more likely to understand and Dean's less likely to feel the need to maintain his 'heroic bravado' in front of her. And it took him a month to even get to this.

**Chapter 18. Will the Real Hannibal Please Stand Up?**

Louise was both confused and panicky when she awoke. She was sitting in a chair with her hands tied behind her back and her vision was black due to the bag over her head, though she could sense several vampires nearby. There was a strange taste of fabric in her mouth and she groaned when she realised that it was because she was gagged. Great. Being tied up, she could deal with. But being gagged always annoyed her, maybe because she was powerless to respond to enemies when they tormented her and words were her only defence when she was immobile.

The bag was suddenly ripped from her head, making her eyes water and blink rapidly as she tried to adjust to the sudden light. When her vision swam back into focus, Louise saw that the bartender that Sam and Dean had bribed earlier was standing in front of her.

' _Dammit!'_ she cursed. _'Of course the vamp was him!'_

Her brother was sitting next to her in another chair, also bound and gagged. Louise exchanged a wary look with Sam before the bartender opened his mouth, revealing his fangs, and advanced on Sam. Louise stared in horror. She knew what it was like to have a vampire feed from you and she wanted to avoid her little brother going through that if at all possible!

"Leave him alone!" she yelled through her gag but all that came out was a muffled cry.

"Wait! Step back, Eli!" A dark-haired woman stood in the door and at her order, the vampire retreated grumpily. She crossed over to Sam and Louise and undid their gags, pulling the pieces of cloth out of their mouths. Louise opened her mouth gratefully to allow the woman to ungag her.

"Thanks," she muttered.

"You're welcome," the woman said. "My name's Lenore. I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you."

"Talk? Yeah but we might have a tough time paying attention to anything but Eli's teeth," Sam said sarcastically.

"He won't hurt you. You have my word," Lenore said.

"Sorry, Lenore, but I don't buy it," Louise said. "You're not the first vampires we've met." She tilted her head, exposing the bite marks on her neck that Luther and Kenny had so kindly left her with. "Two vamps. Two of them fed from me. And both were deranged sickos. One was even kidnapping kids to turn."

"We're not like the others," Lenore argued. "We don't kill humans or drink their blood – haven't done so for ages."

"But –"

"We drink cattle blood," Lenore interrupted Louise. "Yes, the cattle mutilations are all on us. It's absolutely disgusting but it allows us to survive."

"But why?" Sam said.

"Survival," Lenore said. "No deaths or missing people, no reason for hunters to come knocking down our doors. We're practically extinct, you know. Turns out we weren't quite as high up on the food chain as we once thought."

It did make sense to Louise. No human deaths meant no cases, which meant no way of knowing that there were vampires around. She remembered that it was Luther's nest's hunting of Daniel Elkins that had caught their attention, and Kenny and Agnes' kidnapping of little blonde girls that had attracted her to Pontiac. She had to admit, Lenore was pretty smart, and even though Luther, Kenny and Agnes had kind of soured her attitude against vampires, Louise did feel sorry for Lenore (even if she did kidnap her and Sam).

"Why are we explaining ourselves to these killers?" Eli snapped. "We choke down cow's blood so that none of them suffer and tonight, they killed Conrad and celebrated!"

"Note that Sam and I do not support the celebration of killing monsters," Louise said quickly, not liking the look in Eli's eyes. "We do it because it's our job, not because we enjoy it."

"Yeah, I bet," Eli snorted derisively.

"That's enough, Eli," Lenore ordered.

"Yeah, that's enough, Eli," Sam mocked. Louise rolled her eyes and Lenore revealed that she had abducted them simply to talk and tell them that her nest was leaving and then, to prove that her nest had a right to live and that she could be believed, she ordered two of her vampires to take Sam and Louise back with not so much as a scratch on them. Louise shot a sympathetic look at Lenore but the last thing she saw before the bag was pulled back over her head was Lenore just looking away.

A pair of strong hands gripped Louise's arms and guided her out into the cool night air, down some steps and into a car. She was pushed into the back seat next to who she presumed was Sam, judging by the fact that his hands were also still tied behind his back. She wanted to talk, to make a funny quip, but the car rolled off and Louise instead focused on trying to memorise the route without her eyes. She and Sam were already being released unharmed on the leader's orders and she didn't want to push her luck.

A little while later, they pulled up and the vampire next to Louise slid out of the car and pulled her out. The vampires waited until Sam and Louise were both out before untying their hands and Sam and Louise pulled the bags off their heads just in time to see the car, which turned out to be a ute, take off into the darkness.

"That was weird," Louise commented as she and Sam headed for their motel room, where Dean and Gordon were poring over a map. They pulled Dean outside and tried to make him see reason, that they should leave Lenore and her nest alone, but he wouldn't listen.

"You're believing _Gordon_?" Louise said. "Ellen said he was bad news!"

"We barely know her!" Dean said. "You haven't even met her!"

"We barely know Gordon!" Louise retorted.

"Don't think we can't see what this is," Sam said. "He's a substitute for Dad, and a crappy one at that."

The atmosphere changed.

"Shut up, Sam."

"He doesn't even come close, Dean."

"I'm not gonna talk about this."

"Dean, you put on this fake smile and cocky attitude but Lou and I can see right through it!"

"We know how you feel, Dean," Louise said softly. "Dad's dead and he left a hole behind that hurts so bad that you can't take it. I feel it too – every single day! And I know that you feel guilty because Azazel was…well, in you when it happened. But come on. Just talk to us, man! That's what we're here for!'

"You can't just fill up that hole," Sam continued. "It's an insult to Dad's memory."

"Okay," was all that Dean said. Then he punched Sam in the face. Sam didn't rise to the bait, so Dean then punched Louise, nearly breaking her nose and causing blood to start pouring out of it.

"Hit us all you want," Sam said as Louise massaged her nose with a scowl. "It won't change anything."

"Maybe not for you," Louise muttered. "Son of a bitch!"

Dean ordered them to either tell him where the nest was or he'd find it himself but they refused. When they got back inside, they found that Gordon was gone and Sam and Louise insisted that they go and stop him from hunting down the vampires (of course he had to overhear them tell Dean that they went over a bridge), while Dean wanted to go and help him.

"Just give us the benefit of the doubt! You owe us that much," Sam said. Dean grumpily agreed and his bad mood intensified when he realised that Gordon had stolen the keys and he had to hotwire his baby.

"Got it yet?" Louise said snarkily.

"Shut your face," Dean snapped back. A moment later, the Impala started up and Dean nodded in satisfaction. Once they were in the car and on the road, Sam traced out the path on the map from what he remembered, making Louise raise her eyebrows (damn but she couldn't remember anything apart from the bridge!) and Dean grudgingly admit that he was good, even if he was 'a monster pain in the ass'.

Even driving as fast as possible, they didn't arrive at the nest until Gordon was well into torturing a poor, bound Lenore. Louise was absolutely sickened, even more so when Gordon greeted them casually like they were old buddies and invited them to join him as though this was a daily exercise.

"I was just about to start on the fingers." Gordon dragged his knife across Lenore's arm, causing little veins to flare out from the site of the cut. Dean no longer looked at Gordon as though the man was a god.

"Put the knife down." Sam stepped towards Gordon but Dean stopped him. "Just step away from her!"

"You're right. I'm wasting my time. The bitch will never tell me where the others are. May as well put her out of her misery." He pulled out a large knife. "I just sharpened it, so it's completely humane."

"You make me sick," Louise spat. Sam stepped to block Gordon, while Dean tried and failed to placate the man who had a knife aimed at Sam. Dean said that the vampire who killed Gordon's sister deserved to die and Louise nearly threw up when Gordon revealed that his sister hadn't been killed but turned, so he'd killed her and the other vampire personally.

"It wasn't my sister anymore," Gordon shrugged. "I didn't bat an eyelid."

"So you knew all along that the vampires were innocent and you just didn't care?" Sam said.

"Care about what? A nest of vampires suddenly acting nice and leaving people alone? We're supposed to buy that? Doesn't change what they are and I can prove it."

He lashed out suddenly, grabbed Sam's arm and sliced it. Dean aimed his gun at Gordon, who simply positioned his knife across Sam's throat and dragged Sam's arm out over Lenore's face.

"Let him go!" Dean ordered.

"Relax," Gordon said. "I'm just making a point. Sam would already be lying in a pool of blood if I wanted him dead."

He squeezed Sam's arm, forcing droplets of blood to fall onto Lenore's face. She hissed, her fangs extending, and Louise began to worry that she was going to break free and butcher Sam. She started forward but Gordon shot her a look and pressed the knife harder into her little brother's throat.

"You think she's different?" Louise was coming to hate Gordon's constant calm voice. "They're all the same. Evil, bloodthirsty monsters."

But, mumbling denials, Lenore retracted her fangs and turned her face away. This more than anything cinched it for Louise – only a truly controlled vampire could hope to withstand the lure of blood – and she glared daggers at Gordon. Sam pushed the knife away from his throat, untied Lenore and picked her up. Gordon stepped forward to stop him.

"Nuh uh!" Dean said, the gun still aimed at Gordon. "I think you and I have some things to talk about. Lou, go help Sammy."

Louise hurried to go and help Sam load Lenore into the car and they drove her away from the house until they came across her nest standing in the middle of the road. They skidded to a halt and Louise got out first, her hands up in surrender.

"It's okay!" she said. "We've got Lenore! It wasn't us!" Sam helped Lenore out of the car and supported her as she limped over to her nest.

"Lenore!" A redheaded woman ran to take Lenore from Sam, baring her fangs as she did so.

"It wasn't us!" Louise repeated. "Our brother's taking care of the guy who did this! Please, you have to believe us!"

"They're right," Lenore murmured. "Wasn't them…"

Eli stepped forward, his eyes boring right into Louise's.

"Thank – thank you," he said gruffly, practically forcing the words out of his mouth. Louise got the impression that this guy didn't thank many people, so she just smiled at him.

"You ever need anything, give us a call," she said. "Only don't do it in front of Dean. I don't think he's past the whole 'not all vampires are evil Draculas' thing yet."

Eli almost cracked a smile.

"You're alright, for a walking buffet," he said. "I hope we never meet again."

"Gee, thanks."

Sam and Louise returned to the Impala and they returned to the farmhouse by the time the sun had just fully risen above the horizon. Gordon was tied to a chair – a sight that made Louise's spirits soar dramatically – and Dean clocked him across the face before they left, promising to call someone in a couple of days.

"Hey, punch me," Dean said suddenly to Sam and Louise. They stared at him. "C'mon, you get a freebie. I won't even hit back."

"Dude, you look like you went up against a brick wall and lost," Sam said. "I'll pass."

"I won't!" Louise said brightly and she punched Dean square across the face. "Never turn down a free invite to deck someone, Sammy, especially our big brother!"

"Nice one, Lou," Dean said, rubbing his jaw. He then brought the mood down by having a moral crisis about everything they'd killed before and whether or not half of the creatures deserved it and how he'd even enjoyed killing the vampire at the mill and would've killed Lenore in a heartbeat.

"But you didn't kill her and that's all that matters," Sam said.

"Yeah, cause I got my pain in the ass brother and sister," Dean grumbled but he was smirking.

"Guess we'll just have to stick around and keep being pains in your ass," Louise said, slinging an arm around her older brother's shoulders. "Now, what do you say we get the hell outta dodge before Gordy breaks free and comes after us?"

-LW-

"Let me guess," Dean said later that night, when they had stopped at a motel and Louise had confronted him. "You want me to talk about my feelings?"

"Contrary to what you think, it's not all that bad," Louise said, crossing her arms. "Come on, Dean. Sam's worried about you. I'm worried about you."

"Well, you don't need to be. I'm fine."

"Really? So that's why I sometimes find you just staring into the distance in terror? That's why you talk in your sleep and you plead and beg to stop and for Azazel not to hurt us? That's why I find you staring in the mirror and telling yourself that it's you and not him?"

Louise's face softened and she sat down next to Dean on the bed.

"Come on, Dean," she pushed. "I want to help. We all do. You don't have to suffer alone. You just need to talk about it."

Dean snorted darkly.

"Yeah, 'cause you're really gonna be able to understand," he said.

"I'll damn well try!" Louise said heatedly. "You need to talk to _someone_ , Dean, and I'm your sister!"

"No, you're just my cousin who calls herself my sister," Dean said coldly. Louise reeled back as though she'd been slapped and she stood up.

"I have been there for you, Dean," she hissed, "through thick and thin. I've helped you raise Sammy. I've helped you when Dad was being an asshole. I've helped you when you were too stubborn to eat because Sam and I were 'more important'. I was there for you when Sammy left and when Dad used to up and ditch us for up to a week on some half-assed wild goose chase with a text message a day saying that he was fine. I don't give a fuck what you think but I _am_ your sister! So talk to me!"

"So, you wanna talk?" Dean was finally riled up, achieving Louise's goal; it was always easier to get him to talk when he was ranting. "You wanna talk about how I sometimes hallucinate that that son of a bitch is still here? About how hunting and drinking and distracting myself is the only thing that keeps him away? About how I still dream about being possessed and killing Dad and nearly killing you and Sammy? About how I have to look in the mirror to see green eyes instead of yellow and tell myself that he's gone? Hell, Lou, sometimes I still feel like he's here! Sometimes I wake up and I'm paranoid that it's him in control and not me!"

Panting, Dean sat back down. Louise followed suit, her face softening, but Dean just turned away.

"Son of a bitch, Dean," she said quietly. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because it's not your job to deal with my weak ass!" Dean growled. "My job is to protect you two!"

"Yeah, and what about me? I'm the middle kid, Dean! Sometimes, I don't even know whether my job is to be the big sister to Sam or the little sister to you! And Dad never made it easier! He always told me to help take care of Sammy but then he told you to protect me! So I'm being the big sister right now. Talk to me."

Dean just shook his head. Louise shifted closer and was stunned to see that he was struggling to hold back tears.

"You don't get it," he muttered. "You've never had a demon blow smoke up your ass. You don't get how fucking horrible it is to have your body moving but you can't control it. That son of a bitch made me do so many terrible things, Lou…and I remember everything. He damn well made sure that I'd remember everything. And then when he was bored, he'd sift through my greatest hits and shove them back in my face. Like that time Sam ran away for two weeks. Or the time I fucked up and that ghost shoved you out of that building."

Louise winced at the memory. That had been one of the few times they'd gone to the hospital and it had been six months at least before she was allowed back on another hunt.

"You just don't get how fucked up it is that I wake up every morning and I'm still paranoid that he's around," Dean finished, pulling at his short, spiky hair. "And I know that he's gone but…fuck, Lou, I can't help it. And it sucks."

That was it. Before Dean could protest, Louise grabbed him and pulled him into a fierce, tight hug, stroking his back. She felt Dean begin to shake and his hands clenched in her shirt and, to her enormous surprise, she felt something hot and wet begin to seep through the collar of her shirt. Dean was crying! When was the last time he'd ever cried in front of her?

"Just let it all out, Dean," Louise soothed. "I'm a chick. I won't judge."

Dean gave a watery laugh and clung onto her even tighter.

"You're such a bitch sometimes," he said stuffily.

"And you're an asshole, dear brother," Louise said, patting the back of his head. "Like I said, I won't judge."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, until Dean pulled away and looked around to make sure that Sam was still out getting them food.

"Sam never hears about this," he threatened, wiping his face with his sleeve.

"Why would I tell him?" Louise said. "You've gotta stay tough for your baby bro, don't you?"

She ruffled his hair with a smirk. Dean scowled and batted her hand away.

"Shove off, bitch."

"Make me, asshole."

Dean pushed her off the bed and crawled back up to the top of it. Letting out a cry, Louise clambered to her feet and jumped on top of him, trying to pin him to the mattress. Dean just rolled his eyes, kicked her away and rolled over so that he was the one on top of her.

"I do believe that I win, dear sister," he said smugly. Louise glared and punched his shoulder until he got off her.

"But seriously, Dean," she said. "I can see demons and I can feel their ugly asses – no, that sounded wrong, don't even go there."

Dean wiggled his eyebrows with a grin. Louise slapped him around the head.

"Like I said, I can see them. So if you're ever scared that he's back…just tell me. Okay? I'll kick your ass and tell you that he's not."

"Can we just leave it? We had our chick flick moment," Dean complained. Louise gave him a Look. "Fine. If I'm ever spazzing out then I'll tell you. Maybe."

"Good enough." Louise shoved Dean aside and slid into the bed with him, pulling the covers up.

"What's going on? You always sleep with Sam! All possible dirty jokes intended."

"Gross!" Louise hit her smirking brother. "And I'm allowed to spend a night with my big brother. That way, I can protect you from the nasty demons."

"Fuck off, Lou," Dean retorted but he smiled and ruffled her hair. "You're alright for an annoying kid sister with a mid-life crisis."

"And you're alright for a stubborn older brother with a martyr complex. But then, we can't all be perfect, can we?"


	19. Moose, Squirrel and Puppy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some stuff is learned and Louise makes what could be a very stupid decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Just for clarification, I'm not treating Louise's father as some massive revelation because a) It's easy enough to find out who he is based on his nickname and b) Louise has been more than capable of finding out but chose not to, for reasons that I'm not putting here because I feel like I'm just trying to justify myself.

**Chapter 19. Moose, Squirrel and Puppy**

"Please tell me that you're not still hung up on that angel stuff."

Louise looked up from her book at Dean's complaint.

"Why shouldn't I be?" she said. "I found out that my dad was an angel a month ago. I kinda have to know this stuff…"

"Why?" Dean sat down next to Louise. "What good will it do? Even if your dad really is an angel – and yeah, I believe he is – what good's all this crap gonna do? He's not gonna magically pop back into your life."

Nearby, Sam was clearly trying to ignore them by leaning closer to his laptop.

"I don't want him to," Louise snorted. "He's been gone for twenty seven years and John was my dad, not that douchebag. But…it's kinda my heritage, y'know? I sorta feel like I have to know all this stuff."

Dean grimaced.

"Well," he said. "When Azazel was – y'know – blowing smoke around, I picked up a few things. He wasn't really trying to keep it hidden or anything but…I could tell you who your dad is, if you want?"

Louise stared at Dean and even Sam looked up from his laptop. He was actually talking about Azazel without either being overly cocky or on the verge of a breakdown? And he would talk about it to tell her who her father was?

You don't have to," she said. "I really, honest to God don't care."

"You don't want closure or anything?" Dean said. Louise stared. "What? I heard that line somewhere. Some stupid soap. Daytime TV sucks."

Louise snickered and rolled her eyes.

"Will it make you feel better to tell me?" she said. Dean shrugged.

"Maybe. I dunno. Just thought you might wanna know."

"You can tell me but I seriously don't give a single fuck and I want nothing to do with him." Dean shook his head. "Okay, whatever. Lay it on me, Darth Vader."

Dean tried to bitchface her but Sam was the true master of such faces, so his attempt fell flat.

"Araqiel. That's what I got from the yellow-eyed dick. Apparently, they were pretty close back in the day."

Louise frowned and got up to snatch Sam's laptop.

"Hey!" Sam said but he didn't try to take it back, instead crossing over to join them.

"Araqiel…" Louise muttered. "How do you spell that?"

"With a 'q'."

Louise typed his name into the search engine and clicked on the first result that popped up.

"How many different spellings of his name _are_ there?" Dean exclaimed.

"You haven't seen the other angels," Louise laughed darkly. "Alright…Grigori, one of the Watcher leaders, taught man the signs of the earth – or geomancy, whatever the fuck that is."

"A method of divination that involves interpreting marks on the ground or the patterns made when handfuls of earth are thrown," Sam rattled off immediately. Dean and Louise stared at him. "What?"

"You're such a nerd," Dean smirked. Sam bitchfaced him.

"So basically, my dad's a dick." Louise closed her search window and gave the laptop back to Sam. "That's all there is to it. But thanks for telling me, Dean." She smiled and laid a hand on his arm.

"Yeah, whatever. Just thought you'd like to know," Dean said quickly, pulling away. Sam snorted and returned to his seat to continue whatever he was doing on his laptop and Louise returned to her book. Turning to the next page, her eyes widened.

"A summoning ritual?" she murmured. She read on, intrigued, even though she knew it was risky. They'd never encountered angels before, so they were an unknown quantity – not to mention that the Bible was pretty clear about Heaven's attitude towards nephilim. But maybe she'd get an angel that wanted to help her? Because after their last hunt, Louise was a little worried about what her powers were doing.

" _Hey! Get off him!" Louise yelled as the girl – zombie – whatever she was – tackled Sam to the ground and yanked his head back. She ran over but Angela Mason just snarled and easily shoved her away with superhuman strength. Snarling, Louise clambered to her feet and went back for another try._

" _I said, GET OFF!" she yelled, grabbing Angela. To her enormous surprise, she felt a surge of energy flow through her and then she ripped Angela away from Sam and threw her away, sending her flying a few feet and breaking the girl's arm with a loud SNAP. Louise froze and stared at her hands in horrified shock and it was only Dean's quick intervention of bullets sending Angela cannoning into her grave that saved Louise. He snatched up a long metal stake, jumped down into Angela's grave and slammed the stake down through her chest, pinning her to the coffin. She let out one last scream and then fell silent._

" _What's dead should stay dead," he declared. Sam, meanwhile, was staring at Louise with wide eyes._

" _What the hell is happening to me?" Louise murmured, her hands shaking._

If her powers were going to play up and act totally weird then maybe Louise needed an angel's help! Remembering what she'd done totally freaked Louise out and so, her decision made, Louise committed herself to memorising the summoning ritual. She didn't tell Sam and Dean, of course – they would try and talk her out of this but she had to do it! She had to find out more about herself!

-LW-

"You're gonna _what_?" Bobby exclaimed.

"I told you," Louise said impatiently. "I'm going to summon an angel. I just needed to ask you for most of the ingredients because I know you'd notice them going missing."

Bobby shook his head and crossed over to the other side of the room.

"Of all the stupid, crazy ideas…" he muttered.

"I have to!" Louise said desperately. "Come on, Bobby! I threw a girl at least a few feet _and_ broke her arm! I've _never_ done that before! I need help before I – before I hurt one of you!"

Bobby sighed.

"Ya know what the Bible says about nephilim," he said. "Yer more likely to get a good smitin' for yer trouble."

"Not if I can convince them that I don't mean them any harm!" Louise pleaded. "I – I'll tell them that I'll do what they want! That I'll help them and I won't fight against them! I need to do this, Bobby! What if I hurt Sam? Or Dean? Or you?"

Bobby shook his head and returned to stand in front of her. He grabbed her arms firmly but not tightly.

"Ya won't," he said. "Ya love those boys and I know you'd never hurt them."

"On purpose! Please, Bobby! I need your help with this. And so what if they decide to smite me?" Louise looked away, struggling to hold back tears. "At least I won't hurt anybody."

Bobby inhaled sharply.

"Louise –"

"I'm a freak, Bobby! How many other nephilim are there in the world? And if there's even a chance that someone can help me control this then I'll take it! And if they do smite me? Sam and Dean will be safe!"

"And it'll kill 'em!" Bobby snapped. "Don't ya dare ever think that ya would be better off dead! Because ya wouldn't!" He let go of her and took a step back. "Okay. I'll help ya. But yer gonna tell Sam and Dean. And if they wanna come, don't try and stop 'em. If one of them was in yer position, what would ya do?"

Louise closed her eyes, finally giving in and crying.

"I'd kick their asses and go with them and tell them that they're not freaks and I want them to stay alive," she whispered.

"Exactly. Now, gimme this ritual and I'll get the ingredients while ya go and talk to Sam and Dean."

Louise nodded and went into the next room to retrieve the book. Sam was still engrossed with his laptop and Dean was flicking through channels, a bored look on his face, but Louise didn't talk to either of them as she picked up the book and returned to the other room. She flicked through the pages until she found the ritual and then handed the book to Bobby.

"Looks simple enough," he murmured. "I should have all the stuff ya need."

"Great. Thanks, Bobby."

"Now it's on ya, Lou. Go and tell Sam and Dean. And if they decide to tie ya down for the next fifty years, it ain't gonna be on me."

Louise grimaced and nodded, returning to the other room. Sam and Dean were still engrossed in their activities so, before she could back out, she cleared her throat. Her brothers stared at her.

"Yes?" Dean said eventually. "You want something or can I return to my crappy daytime TV?"

Louise took a breath.

"I'mgonnasummonanangel," she blurted out. Sam and Dean blinked.

"What?" Sam said. Louise groaned.

"I'm. Going. To. Summon. An. Angel," she said slowly. As she predicted, Sam and Dean were not happy.

"Are you crazy?" Sam exclaimed. "You know what the Bible says about nephilim!"

"You trying to get yourself killed?" Dean demanded.

"I have to!" Louise said, not relishing the task of having to explain her reasoning again. "You saw what happened with Angela Mason! What if more powers show up and I don't know how to control them? I threw a girl several feet and snapped her arm!"

"She was a dead body!" Dean said.

"And you wouldn't have known if you didn't know that she had no heartbeat! What if it plays up again? What if – what if I hurt you? Or Sam?"

"You're being ridiculous," Dean retorted. Before Louise could snap back, he got up and grabbed her by the shoulders. "Sam and I won't let you hurt us. And even if you do…well, it's not like we haven't hurt each other before."

"You don't have freaky powers like this!" Louise snapped. "You're not some angel-human hybrid freak!"

"Excuse me?" A pissed Sam stood up. "Freaky powers? So, what, the weird visions I've been having for the past year are normal? You think they're all fun and games? You can see demons, Lou! You've saved our asses with your senses! And you can throw zombies around! And remember Max Miller, back in Michigan? He could levitate things! That would've been a pretty useful power! But no, I'm just stuck with visions that nearly always come too late to help anyone – hell, I saw Max's uncle dying and we were _still_ too late! – and I have to watch people suffer and die with no clue of what's coming next!"

Sam was breathing heavily by the end of his rant. Louise, meanwhile, was frozen in shock. She'd totally forgotten about Sam and his visions! And here she was, bitching and moaning about weird powers of her own that didn't come in uncontrollable bursts and leave her feeling traumatised and useless! How could she be such a crappy sister?

"I'm sorry, Sam," she mumbled. Sam seemed to relax a little.

"It's cool," he said. "I get it. Something comes out of the blue and you panic. But…I dunno, it's been getting to me that you complain about it. I'd love to be able to throw someone like that or see demons and sense monsters rather than seeing people die. I'd be able to do a lot more with that."

"Your visions _are_ useful, Sam!" Louise protested. "You remember Jenny and Sari and Ritchie? Back in Lawrence? They would've all died from that poltergeist if you hadn't seen them! And Max's stepmom, Alice – Max would've killed her too if you hadn't seen it. Not to mention Monica and Rosie in Salvation – you weren't there but Monica was _this_ close to dying just like Aunt Mary did! And if Charlie managed to get the baby out? Who's to say that he wouldn't have – that Rosie wouldn't have grown up just like us? Your visions _do_ help, Sam! But you can't save everyone. Hell, I couldn't even stop us getting snatched in Chicago."

"I thought we were over that," Dean said sharply. "That one's not on you, Lou."

"See?" Louise said to Sam. "The people you saw who died aren't on you, Sammy. They're on whatever killed them. And besides, you don't want to be able to see demons. They're nasty and horrible and I literally feel like throwing up whenever I'm around them."

Silence fell on the room.

"Well, I'm glad we had this little chat," Dean said with forced cheerfulness. "So nice to clear the air with a bit of chick-flickness."

Sam and Louise continued to eye each other up.

"Sorry," they said at the same time. "What are you apologising for? I'm the one who should be sorry. Cut it out! No, _you_ cut it out! Seriously! I swear to God!"

Dean was laughing his ass off. Rolling their eyes, Sam and Louise grinned and hugged each other, Louise feeling slightly threatened by her little brother's height.

"You're like a moose," she muttered. "Huge, lanky and scary-looking with a soft heart. But mostly huge."

"Gee, thanks," Sam replied sarcastically. "You're like a puppy. Always running around everywhere, always jumping on everyone, leaving a mess everywhere, never shutting up…but loyal and adorable with better senses than us."

Louise bitchfaced him.

"And she's a bitch," Dean grinned, finally getting his laughter under control. "God, I haven't laughed like that in months…"

"Gee, thanks," Louise said sarcastically. "I wonder what you are."

Her eyes landed on the huge pile of fast food near Dean's seat. She and Sam exchanged looks and grinned widely.

"Squirrel," they said at the same time.

"Oh, come on!" Dean complained.

-LW-

"You're still doing this?" Sam said as Louise headed for Bobby's front door that night with the book and a small bag of ingredients that Bobby had rustled up for her. "Even though you could get yourself killed?"

"I have to," Louise said pleadingly. "If there's even a small chance that I can get these powers under control…wouldn't you do the same if you had the chance to control your visions?"

Sam stared at her, as did Dean. Louise hoped that they saw her reasoning and didn't just try to haul her upstairs and tie her down to the bed for the next fifty years.

"Then we're coming," Dean said firmly.

"Dean –"

"Either we come with you or we lock you upstairs until Judgement Day."

"I'm doing this alone to protect you!"

"Yeah? I'm your big brother, Lou. It's my job to protect _you_! But you've got a point. Sammy, you're staying behind."

"Like hell I am! If you're doing this, Lou, we're doing this together."

Louise stared at her brothers, feeling oddly touched. Did they really love her that much that they were willing to risk their lives so that she could do something idiotic and stupid?

"Fine," she finally said. "Let's go."

Louise opened the front door and the three of them slipped out.

"Is Bobby coming?" Sam said.

"I asked him not to," Louise said as they got into the Impala. She was still more than a little disgruntled to be shunted to the backseat again after months of driving but with Sam's long limbs, she supposed that he did need shotgun more than she did. "Didn't want him to risk his ass. He said he'd stay behind and get the ingredients for the ritual so long as I told you two about it."

It was a short drive to the abandoned barn that Louise had chosen to summon an angel to. She briefly considered drawing all the protective symbols that she knew about but eventually decided against it; none of the symbols she knew would protect against angels and it would just be a waste of effort. They'd thought about bringing the Colt but it only had one bullet left and if they wasted it…well, they'd have nothing to kill Azazel with. And John would have been pissed if they'd wasted their last bullet. Also, was it even possible to kill an angel?

"Okay, we ready?" Dean said, standing over a bowl where he'd mixed the ingredients.

"Yep," Sam said.

"Same," Louise agreed. She crossed over to the bowl, kneeled down, took a pinch of powder from a small bag that had been among the ingredients and sprinkled it into the first bowl with a small Latin chant.

Nothing happened.

"Wow," Dean said, making a show of looking around. "That was amazing! I can't believe my eyes!"

"Fuck off," Louise said snarkily. "I don't understand. I did the ritual right! All the steps all the ingredients…"

"Maybe it takes time?" Sam said. "We've never summoned an angel before. Reckon we should stick around for a bit?"

"One hour," Dean said. "Then we're leaving."

"You're sure that angels exist? That Azazel wasn't just lying to mess with your head?" Sam said to Louise. Dean answered for her.

"Yeah, they do. He was positively gleeful about it – said that they were important but wouldn't say what for."

"Then do we really want to be summoning something that we've never encountered before and that possibly has a hidden agenda?" Sam reasoned.

"It's done, Sammy," Louise said. "Just sit back and enjoy the show."

The next half an hour was one of the slowest of Louise's life. While Sam amused himself by flicking through the book and Dean carved something into the wooden walls, Louise lay on the ground and mentally counted the seconds with her eyes closed.

"I don't think they're gonna show," Dean finally spoke up. "Didn't know it was possible to ignore a summons but…"

"Let's just wait a bit longer," Louise said, wanting to punch Dean for interrupting her counting. She'd nearly made it to two thousand! "Maybe they got held up."

"Maybe they got stuck in traffic," Sam snickered, still reading the book. Louise and Dean snorted. All of a sudden, the roof of the barn began to shake and rattle and Louise bolted upright, her eyes flying open. Sam dumped the book on the ground and the three of them scrambled to their feet, looking around warily.

"You think it's them?" Louise murmured.

"Could just be the wind," Dean replied. The barn doors suddenly burst open and Sam, Dean and Louise jumped and backed away towards the far wall, staring at the doors with wide eyes. A flash of lightning seemed to accompany the creature's entrance but all Louise could focus on was the brilliant being of light that seemed to be compressed in a vaguely humanoid figure, with two massive wings spread out behind it. The wings were jet black with sheens of blue in different shades and they looked like feathers but at the same time, they also looked nothing like feathers – if such a thing made sense. If Louise had been asked later to describe them, she would have just shaken her head and waved her hands around in a futile attempt to even come close because she could not think of a single word in the English language to do so.

"Son of a bitch," she whispered. Squeezing her eyes shut, she rubbed them and then opened them. Her vision seemed to adjust to the thing – the _angel_ – because its light dimmed enough so that she could see what it looked like to Sam and Dean. It was a human male, dressed in a nice suit with a blue tie and a beige trench coat to complete the ensemble. But when she caught sight of the angel's face, her jaw dropped and she made a choking noise.

" _J-Jimmy_?"


	20. My Fault

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise realises just how much one decision will change everything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> So I've decided that, until an angel takes a vessel, they will be referred to with gender neutral pronouns because I'm certain that they are agender and that we see their gender according to their vessel (hence half the problems with Destiel ever becoming canon in the first place).

**Chapter 20. My Fault**

Louise couldn't breathe. Why did this angel look like Jimmy Novak? Could it read her mind? Had it taken on the visage of someone she knew in an attempt to put her at ease? But she barely knew Jimmy! Sure, he was her friend – she thought – but he wasn't the best person to relax her! If he wanted to put her at ease then why didn't he look like Dean? Or Sam? Or Bobby?

"Jimmy? Who the hell's Jimmy?" Dean said. Louise swallowed.

"Jimmy Novak," she said hoarsely. "A friend I made in Pontiac. I saved his daughter from those vamps."

"Yes," the angel said in a deep, gravelly voice. It sounded like Jimmy's voice but at the same time, it was too low. "Jimmy thinks highly of you, Louise Winchester. That is part of the reason he agreed to assist me."

"A-Assist you? That's really Jimmy?" Louise said in horror. "What the fuck are you doing in him?"

The angel tilted his head in an almost curious manner.

"You summoned me," he said. "I assumed that you did not want your eyes to be burned out of their sockets upon seeing my true form. So I took a vessel."

Louise was about to faint. Jimmy had been possessed! And it was all her fault!

"So why this Jimmy guy, then?" Dean snapped, his hand tight around Louise's wrist. Louise knew that the sight of a possessed person must have been getting to him big time. "Why not some random shmuck on the street?"

The angel stared at Dean with an undecipherable emotion in his eyes. If Louise didn't know any better, she'd say that he recognised Dean…but how? They'd never met before in their lives!

"Angels require very specific vessels," the angel said. "Or else they…burn the person out. Jimmy Novak is my true vessel. He's a devout man. He prayed for this – to be able to serve a higher purpose."

"Jimmy, you stupid idiot," Louise murmured. Of course her religious friend would have said yes to helping an angel!

"So who are you?" Sam said. The angel looked at him and Louise wondered if she imagined the brief flash of disgust in the angel's eyes. The alarmed look on Sam's face told her that she hadn't. But why would an angel hate her brother?

"Castiel," the angel finally said. "I'm an angel of the Lord."

Lightning flashed and his wings spread out in a display that made Louise want to kneel and proclaim that she wasn't worthy of being in his presence. She saw shadows on the walls of the barn and knew that that was what Sam and Dean must have been seeing but she was more transfixed by his actual wings.

"But you knew that," Castiel continued. "Why have you summoned me? We haven't walked the earth in two thousand years. My superiors were not happy when we felt the summons."

"Th-That'd be on me." Louise stepped forward shakily and she nearly threw up when Castiel's eyes moved to her. It was disorienting to see both Jimmy's body and Castiel's true form reacting and Louise had to blink rapidly to steady her vision. "I…well, I wanted to ask for help."

"Angels do not help humans." Yeah, this was going brilliantly. "We are not servants of humanity, to be called on a whim."

"I – I know that." Louise licked her lips, her mouth as dry as a desert. "I've read the Bible You're warriors of God and all. But – and yeah, I know how you guys feel about this too – I'm…I'm a nephil."

Castiel continued to stare at her.

"And I just wanted to ask for help controlling my powers," Louise said in a rush, her words tumbling over each other. "I swear, I won't try and off you guys. I know that the nephilim in the Bible were psychopathic assholes who loved killing things but I'm different! I swear! I was just wondering if you could help me and I wouldn't try and rise up and kill you all – not that I would anyway –"

"You're an abomination." Castiel's clear, cutting tone silenced Louise, who gulped and took a step back. "You should not exist. Our orders are to eliminate any nephilim that we may encounter so that they do not pose a threat to Heaven."

He took a step towards Louise. Louise danced back, beginning to hyperventilate. Why had she thought that this was a good idea? And why had she agreed to drag her brothers into this mess?

"But I won't! I swear! That's why I want to be able to control them!" she stammered. Castiel continued to advance on her, unforgiving.

"My orders are clear," he said firmly. Louise felt someone grab her arm and then Dean yanked her behind him and Sam.

"You want Lou, you gotta get through us," he snarled. "We're not letting some winged dick kill our sister."

"Sister? She is your cousin."

"Sister," Sam retorted. "And like Dean said, if you want her then you'll have to kill us too."

Something flashed in Castiel's eyes – something akin to disgust or loathing. Louise didn't get it. What did Castiel have against Sam?

"I'm just following orders," he insisted. "And my orders are to –"

He broke off, frowning up at the roof. Before Louise could begin to wonder what was going on, he spread his massive black wings and vanished with a rustling sound. Louise let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and sagged against Dean in relief.

"Okay, I admit it," she said. "That was a crappy idea. You two have bragging rights for the rest of the night."

"Damn right, we do," Dean said. "Now let's get outta here before he comes back and gets all smitey."

-LW-

"Louise Winchester is a nephil," Castiel said, his mind racing. Nephilim were forbidden and thought to be extinct, so why did one exist? And she was the cousin of the Righteous Man and the Boy King! "She summoned me under the impression that I would help her. I was about to smite her – though Sam and Dean Winchester attempted to protect her – when I was ordered to return to Heaven."

"A nephil?" Zachariah's eyes shone with interest. "That foolish girl. All nephilim must be exterminated like the abominations they are. I want you to return, Castiel, and eliminate her. But don't touch Dean or Sam Winchester."

Castiel nodded and was about to return to Earth when he felt a presence more powerful than Zachariah arrive. He stiffened, not daring to move. There was only one angel that powerful!

"Michael," he murmured, turning around. Zachariah was staring behind Castiel with wide eyes.

"Castiel." Michael's voice was crisp and sharp. "You have new orders. You are not to harm one hair on Louise Winchester's head."

"B-But she's an abomination!" Zachariah burst out. "All nephilim must be exterminated!"

Michael's true form pulsed in irritation.

"Are you questioning me, Zachariah?" ne said in a deceptively calm voice. Castiel was rigid, trying not to draw attention to himself.

"N-No! Of course not! But why, may I ask, does the Winchester girl get to live?"

"Because, Zachariah," Michael said patiently, "she is Sam and Dean Winchester's cousin. Hell is in unrest, as I'm sure you've heard."

Castiel didn't move. He knew that Hell was plotting something but he didn't know what – and if his superiors knew then they weren't telling him.

"They are plotting something. And soon, we're going to need Dean Winchester's help – he _is_ the Righteous Man. Tell me, do you really think that he'll be willing to help if you smite his cousin?"

Castiel didn't miss how Michael said 'you', as though Zachariah nemself was to blame for following orders.

"No," Zachariah said. "But what do we do about Louise Winchester? Her very existence is an insult to our Father!"

"But she could be useful," Michael argued. Castiel felt the archangel shift slightly and knew that he was now the focus of Michael's attention. "You have new orders, Castiel."

"What are they?" Castiel said immediately.

"I want you to return to the Winchesters. Help Louise train her powers, protect her and her cousins and gain her trust. When we eventually do need Dean Winchester's help, he will be far more likely to assist us if his cousin trusts him. But you will tell them that you have been ordered to assist Louise in order to assure that she does not rise up against Heaven. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Michael."

"Then go."

When Castiel was gone, Michael looked back at Zachariah.

"You know that Dean Winchester is my true vessel," ne said. "Do you really think that he will consent if we kill his cousin?"

"No," Zachariah said. "But how does gaining the trust of the girl help you secure Dean Winchester as a vessel?"

"Castiel said that Sam and Dean attempted to shield her from him. Obviously, the three of them share a very close bond." Nir mind flashed back to 1978, when ne'd first encountered the Winchester trio. Louise had seemed much more in control of her powers then, so she had obviously found somebody to assist her. Michael was sure that Castiel had been that assistance. "If we kill Louise then Dean won't cooperate. But if we gain her trust…"

"Then she'll be more likely to speak up for us!" Zachariah finished with a wide grin, though this looked odd on nir true form. "And if she trusts us then Dean Winchester will follow and then, all alone, Sam will be more inclined to turn to Lucifer. Excellent plan, Michael."

Michael nodded, though ne didn't care much for Zachariah's blatant flattery. If given the choice, ne'd much rather not have to go through all of this and just let nir younger brother be. But their Father Himself had decreed that the Apocalypse was to happen and so Michael was forced to do this, no matter how ne felt.

"Watch Castiel, won't you?" ne said. "From what I hear from Naomi, that one has a history of not following orders."

"As you wish."

-LW-

"That could've gone better," Bobby snorted after the Winchesters had finished their story, taking a swig of beer. "Least he ran before he could smite ya."

"Yeah," Louise agreed dully. "I should've listened to you, Bobby. I shouldn't've summoned him. Now Jimmy's stuck playing Quirrell to Lord Castiel and it's all my fault."

"Don't say that," Bobby said firmly. "Ya couldn't've known that Jimmy was his true vessel. Ya ready to put the whole angel thing behind ya?"

Louise nodded miserably. She went to take a swig of beer when she heard a rustling noise and felt a familiar presence behind her.

"Holy crap!" She jumped away from Castiel, who was no longer looking at her as though she was the spawn of Satan but instead with clear curiosity.

"What're you doing here?" Dean demanded. "You here to finish the job?"

"No." Castiel took a step forward so Louise took a step back, her hands beginning to shake again. "I apologise for my hastiness earlier."

"Hastiness?" Louise said in a high voice. "You were ready to smite the crap out of me!"

"Those were my orders," Castiel said. "My superiors summoned me before I could do so. I have new orders. I am to help you, Louise Winchester, and ensure that you do not revolt against Heaven. The last time that nephilim rose against Heaven was…devastating."

"Trust me, you've got no revolution from me," Louise said quickly. Castiel seemed to examine her.

"That is good to hear," he said. "My orders now are to assist you with your powers and ensure that you pose no threat to Heaven. I will return when I see fit, Louise."

Just like back in the barn, he spread his wings. Recognising it as his pre-flight move, Louise prepared for his disappearance but even she was taken by surprise at how sudden his departure was.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean said. "I swear, that dick gets off on doing that to us."

"So Heaven's given me a babysitter," Louise remarked blankly. "Great. Can't wait till he puts me in time-out or bangs his magic stick."


	21. Use the Force, Andy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Star Wars really isn't all it's cracked up to be. Oh and Louise sucks at arcade games.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

**Chapter 21. Use the Force, Andy**

"So this is the famous Louise Winchester?" Jo said with a grin, playing with some bills in her hand. "Nice to finally meet you in person."

"Same," Louise said with a smile. She liked Jo and was glad to finally meet her, though she wished that their reason for coming was a little different; Sam had had a vision about a guy going nuts and shooting someone in a gun shop before splattering his own brains and so they were in a bit of a hurry to find out where the guy could be before it actually happened.

"Just can't stay away, huh?" Jo said to Dean.

"Looks like," Dean smirked. "How you doin'?"

"Where's Ash?" Sam interrupted.

"In his back room."

"Great." Sam pushed past Jo.

"And I'm fine…"

"Sorry, he's – we're kind of on a busy schedule," Dean apologised, following Sam.

"Hey, don't worry, JoJo." Louise slung an arm around Jo's shoulders. "Let's let the big ol' men have their talk while we catch up."

"I kinda forgot to mention that Ash wasn't, well…clothed," Jo admitted. Louise burst out laughing, glad that she hadn't gone with them – the sight of pretty much any unclothed body always made her uncomfortable unless she was treating the person's injuries. "You don't wanna know. Also, if you call me JoJo again, I'll string you up and use you for target practice."

"Noted," Louise said. "So, Blondie, what ya wanna do?"

Jo's grin widened and she nodded back at an old arcade game.

"Fancy a round?" she said. "Twenty bucks that I win."

"Make it fifty," Louise said confidently, following Jo over to the game. Jo started it up and then they picked up their plastic guns and began to shoot. Louise was a natural – no doubt due to training all her life – but plastic arcade guns were different to real guns and, to her annoyance, she missed several targets. Jo hit them all and turned to Louise with a smug grin.

"Pay up, Winchester," she said. Scowling, Louise pulled a fifty dollar bill out of her pocket and handed it to Jo, who pocketed it with raised eyebrows.

"Shouldn't you be working?" Louise said grumpily, though there was no real heat behind her words. Jo's grin widened and she returned to serving behind the bar, leaving Louise to slump down at the nearest table, wishing that she had a beer or another drink. Her mood immediately plummeted when a guy with slick black hair plonked down onto the chair next to her, his grin telling her straight away what he was after.

"Don't get pissed, princess," the man said. "Jo beats everybody. Damn girl acts like she owns the game."

"She kind of does," Louise pointed out. The man shrugged.

"Don't matter," he said. "How 'bout you an' me ditch this dump and go have some fun?"

Yep. A booty call. Just what Louise wanted.

"Not interested," she said firmly, really wishing that she had that drink. The man rolled his eyes and put a hand on her arm.

"C'mon, sugar," he said. "Y'know you're interested."

"I'm really not."

"Playing hard to get, eh?"

"No. I'm playing impossible to get because I'm not interested."

The man's eyebrows rose and he leaned away.

"So, what, you're gay or somethin'?"

Louise sighed. How hard was it for him to take a hint?

"Or something. I'm not anything except completely uninterested in your ugly ass."

The man snarled.

"What'd you say?" His grip tightened on her arm and, just as Louise was about to punch him in the face –

"Shove off, asshole. She said no."

Louise grinned when the guy paled upon seeing a pissed Dean and made a hasty retreat. Dean raised his eyebrows.

"What?" Louise said. "He wasn't worth the effort. Just another sleazebag."

"Yeah, whatever. You look like you need a drink. Come over to the bar with me."

"I got no cash on me," Louise complained as she stood up and they walked over. "Jo hustled me out of my last fifty."

Jo, who had caught her last sentence, grinned widely.

"Not my fault you're totally shit at arcade shooting," she said. "Here, I'll give your drink on the house."

She slid a beer to Louise, who took a swig gratefully.

"You deserve it for not punching Crew in the face," Jo added.

"Crew? The sleazebag?"

"Yep. Hits on every chick here until he gets lucky – which he never does. Nearly everyone's punched him in the face. I would've but Mom scared him so bad that he never even looks at me."

She smirked at Crew, who went even paler and looked away.

"Enjoy the drink. I've got work to do."

Jo disappeared to go and collect dirty dishes from the tables. Louise sighed and took another gulp.

"Any luck?" she said.

"Guthrie, Oklahoma," Dean replied. "Sam's got Ash lookin' for anyone else whose mom died like ours."

"You – you didn't get anything from Azazel?" Louise said carefully. Dean's jaw set and he shook his head.

"No. Son of a bitch didn't share much. Only showed stuff that he thought would get under my skin."

Dean's eyes were glued on a nearby glass, his whole body rigid.

"Yellow eyes?" Louise said, immediately recognising what was up. Dean gave a very small nod. "He's not here, Dean. Just breathe."

Dean closed his eyes, took a deep breath and opened them. He relaxed.

"Thanks, Lou," he muttered. Louise smiled and punched him gently on the shoulder.

"All good, bro."

"You heard from your angel buddy?"

Louise grimaced when Dean mentioned Castiel. The angel hadn't dropped in once since disappearing and if not for Sam and Dean remembering him, she would've thought that it was all one elaborate dream.

"Nope. I've tried yelling at him but that son of a bitch won't answer. And I don't wanna summon him again and piss him off. I've still got no clue why I get to live when all other nephilim get smoked but hey, I'm not complaining."

Dean snorted darkly. Suddenly, the opening chords of 'Can't Fight This Feeling' by REO Speedwagon started to play and Louise immediately searched for a knife to drive through her ears. Next to her, Dean looked around in horror at Jo, who was bringing glasses over to the bar with a smug smile.

"REO Speedwagon?" he complained.

"Damn right," Jo said firmly. "Kevin Cronin sings it from the heart."

Could Jo be any more blatant about her crush? Louise had picked it as soon as they'd walked in and this really wasn't helping. But she didn't want to tell Jo that Dean just wasn't into her, feeling that it wasn't her place to get involved.

"Your moms died that way too, didn't they?" Jo was saying. "Fire in Sam's nursery?"

"Can we not talk about it?" Louise said, clenching her fists. There was no way in hell she'd punch Jo but if they kept talking about it, she definitely would smash something.

"Yeah, it's kind of a family thing," Dean said.

"I could help," Jo volunteered.

"I'm sure you could. But we've gotta take on this one ourselves. Also, if I ran off with you then your mom would kill me."

Ellen looked around from across the bar. Dean smiled nervously and Louise contemplated slinking further into her seat until Ellen saw her and nodded with a warm smile.

"You're afraid of my mother?" Jo said sceptically.

"I haven't even met her properly and I'm terrified," Louise said. Dean nodded in agreement.

"C'mon, we've got a match." Louise was saved from further conversation by Sam grabbing her and Dean's arms and hauling them up.

"Bye, Jo!" Louise called as Sam tugged her away from the bar. "I'll kick your ass next time!"

"You wish!"

-LW-

" _And even as I wander, I'm keeping you in sight! You're a candle in the window on a cold, dark, winter night! And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might…_ "

"Kill me now," Louise muttered, slumping in her seat and covering her ears to protect them against Dean's singing.

"What? I heard it somewhere and I can't get it outta my head!" Dean said quickly.

"Yeah, in the bar while Jo was coming on to you," Louise taunted. "I thought you hated REO!"

"I do!"

"Dean and Jo, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N –"

"So help me, if you finish that, I'm going to stick a bullet up your ass and ditch you on the side of the road," Dean threatened. Louise fell silent but kept smirking. "Sam, whatcha got?"

"Andrew Gallagher," Sam replied, looking at a stack of papers. "Born in eighty three, lost his mom in a nursery fire exactly six months later."

"You think the demon killed his mom too?" Dean said.

"Looks like it."

"How'd you even know to look for him?"

"Every vision I've had that's not about Yellow-Eyes was about the other kids, like Max."

"Yeah but Max was a pasty little psycho."

"The point is, Max was killing people and I was having the same type of visions," Sam said. "And now it could be happening all over again with Gallagher."

"So, how do we find him?" Louise said.

"Don't know. No address, no employment, owes money on his bills – phone, credit, utilities…"

"Collection agency flags?" Dean said.

"None in the system."

"They just let him take a walk?"

"Seems like it. There's a work address from about a year ago so I say we start there."

-LW-

To track down Andy, the boys ended up resorting to pretending to be lawyers who were representing Andy's 'recently passed Great-Aunt Leta', while Louise sat nearby and pretended to be engaged in a magazine article. The waitress – Tracey – said that nobody saw much of Andy anymore but that if they wanted to find him, they should try a van with a barbarian queen riding a polar bear painted on the side.

"Ah, crap," Louise said as they approached the van. "I think I might actually like this guy."

"Same," Dean agreed. "That is one sweet van. What's got your knickers in a knot, Sammy?"

"This Andrew Gallagher…he's the second guy we've found who was visited by Azazel and now he's killing people."

"Hey, he could be innocent," Dean said.

"My visions haven't been wrong before, Dean! And I'm one of them!"

"Hell, no!" Louise said. "You're nothing like Max!"

"But you heard Azazel! He said he had plans for me and the other children like me! Maybe this is his plan! Maybe we're all a bunch of psychic freaks who are supposed to be –"

"Killers?" Dean scoffed. "Give us a break, Sam! You don't have a murderous bone in your body!"

"Last I checked, I kill all kinds of things."

"Things that killed first and are asking for it," Louise said. "Wait, that's him!"

A dark-haired man in pyjamas left a building, blowing a kiss up at a blonde woman in a second storey window. The man – Andy – stopped to chat with another man, who smiled and gave him his coffee, and then Andy greeted an older black man.

"That's him! That older dude, that's the shooter from my vision!" Sam hissed.

"Alright, you keep an eye on him. Lou and I'll stick with Andy," Dean said. Sam got out of the car and followed the black man, while Louise climbed into the front seat, and she and Dean followed Andy in his barbarian queen truck. A few minutes later, Andy stopped, got out of the van and approached the Impala. Dean stashed a gun in his jacket quickly.

"Hey!" Andy said cheerfully when he got to Dean's window.

"Hey," Dean replied. Louise waved, immediately feeling at ease.

"This is a nice ride!"

"Yeah, thanks."

"The '67 Impala's the best one if you ask me!"

"Yeah. Been in the family for decades. Can't let a car like this go to waste."

"Damn straight. Hey, can I have it?"

Louise felt a strange wave wash over her and she and Dean grinned at Andy. Hey, if he wanted the car so bad then why not let him have it?

"Sure, man!" A smiling Dean got out of the car and let Andy slide into the driver's seat. "Hop right in there. There ya go."

"Thanks, man! Take it easy," Andy said. He grinned at Louise. "Hey, babe, you don't mind coming with me, do you?"

"Of course not!" Louise said cheerfully. Wait…yes, she did mind! She wanted out! But Andy was so nice and if it would make him happy, then why not? "Step on it, man!"

Andy drove off, leaving a confused-looking Dean behind.


	22. Plots and Schemes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I have a tendency to summarise canon scenes and chapters that don't change with Louise because not only are they a pain to write but y'all already know what happens, so I don't see the point of writing out large chunks of canon speech.

**Chapter 22. Plots and Schemes**

After a few minutes, Andy pulled over outside the café that Louise had been at earlier with the boys.

"Wait here a minute, alright?" he said.

"Sure!" Louise chirped. Andy disappeared inside and a moment later, Louise shook her head and groaned. Man, she felt dizzy! And why had she gone along with Andy like that? She didn't even like the guy!

"Great, I've got a fucking Jedi in my head," she groaned. She opened her door, planning on running for it and calling Sam and Dean to tell them where she was, but the driver's door opened and Andy slid into the seat. Louise groaned to herself, preparing herself for some more mind control.

"Where're you going?" Andy said, his voice washing over Louise again.

"I was gonna go call my brothers and sister and friend and tell them where I was," she said. "Is that alright?"

"No!" Andy snapped. He started mumbling to himself but strangely, Louise didn't feel compelled to talk to him like she had before. "Alright. Get out of the car."

Louise quickly got out of the Impala and looked at Andy for further instructions. He grabbed her hand. "C'mon. You're coming with me."

"Alright." Louise allowed Andy to lead her away from the Impala and back to his van a few streets away. Louise thought that he wanted her to get inside with him but Andy held out a hand. "Wait. And don't make a sound."

Louise stood helplessly as Sam and Dean approached the van a few moments later, opened up the back and started to look inside. Andy's jaw set.

"What do they want?" he murmured. Louise didn't feel the need to answer him, so she kept silent. A minute later, her brothers left and Louise tried desperately to call out to them, to tell them that a weird Jedi guy was keeping her with him, but she just couldn't. When they were gone, Andy led Louise over to his van and started checking to see if anything was missing.

"Right. It's all there. Come on in, babe."

For a brief, horrible moment, Louise thought that he was going to force her to make out with him or something and she struggled not to throw up or show any sign of weakness. But he didn't; instead, he started to play his music and leaned back with a content sigh, closing his eyes. Louise watched him curiously. When she finally felt his influence start to fade, she thought about making a run for it but decided to wait. Andy wasn't asleep yet and hey, she wanted to have a bit of fun with this guy!

"You do know that my brothers are gonna be pissed that you kidnapped me, right?" Louise said. Andy's eyes flew open. "And they have guns."

"G-Guns?" Andy bolted upright, staring at her with a chalk white face.

"Actual guns," Louise confirmed with an evil grin. "And my brothers are _so_ overprotective of me. Do you wanna know what they did to the last guy I was with?" She leaned in close to whisper. "They pointed their guns at his family jewels and threatened to blow them off if he even so much as looked at me again. And then they chased him all the way home – still with their guns! – and gave him the 'Look' until he peed himself!"

Okay, so maybe she was embellishing a few details. Especially the bit where she'd actually ever been with someone. But hey, it was the guy's fault for kidnapping her!

"I – oh, crap." Andy ran his trembling hands through his hair. "I'm sorry – I'll take you home now – just please don't set your brothers on me – I promise I won't do it again!"

Louise felt a little sorry for Andy. She didn't think he was a jerk and he did seem genuinely sorry, so she lightened up on him.

"Just take me back and I'll forget all about it," she said.

"Really?" Andy grinned at her shakily. "You've got a deal. I really am sorry. I just get a bit carried away sometimes. How about I buy you a coffee on the way and you tell me your name so I'm not calling you babe all the time?"

"Sure. I'm Louise. But if you _ever_ Jedi me again, I will throw you off the nearest cliff and then haul you back up for my brothers to have a go at. And then they will torch your corpse."

"Sure! Okay!" Andy said quickly as they got into their seats in the van. He pulled up at the café a few minutes later and returned with two drinks, one of which he handed to Louise.

"Thanks." She took a sip.

"I'm really sorry, you know."

"Dude, if you apologise one more time…"

"Right. Okay. But why aren't you pissed at me? Didn't you think that I would – you know – force you to make out with me or something?"

"Believe me, if you really were a rapey son of a bitch, I'd have pitched you over a bridge. I just get the feeling you're more 'power corrupts' than 'I vant to steal your virtue, pretty maiden!'"

Andy snorted into his drink.

"Trust me, I've met far worse than you. But hey, you're not too bad once you throw the Force out of the picture."

"I swear, if you make a Star Wars reference one more time…"

Louise rolled her eyes.

"Just take me back to Sam and Dean," she said.

"More than happy to. I want to know why you guys are following me and I promised not to Jedi you anymore."

"I didn't mean that it was okay to Obi-Wan them either," Louise muttered.

After a bit of searching, Louise and Andy finally found the Impala in a vacant parking lot and Andy demanded that Sam and Dean tell him why they were really following him, making sure to leave Louise out of his order. Dean spilled about everything: they were hunters, Sam was psychic like Andy, Louise was psychic too but not like them, Sam thought Andy was a murderer and he was worried he would become one himself, and so on. Andy stared at him disbelievingly.

"Okay, you know what? Just leave me alone!"

"Okay," Dean agreed easily.

"Alright?" Andy turned to Louise. "See you around, Louise." He walked off, leaving Dean holding his head, but Sam got out of the car and confronted Andy, who was terrified when his mind control didn't work. Meanwhile, Louise stayed behind with Dean, who was standing rigidly next to the Impala.

"You okay?" she murmured. Dean nodded stiffly. "Dean, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he muttered. "Just – just reminds me of that douchebag, is all."

Louise immediately knew who he was talking about. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it.

"Andy isn't Azazel," she said firmly. "He'd never make you kill anyone or do anything that Azazel made you do!"

"Doesn't matter." Dean's hand clenched around Louise's almost painfully. "Still mind control. Can't stand it."

Louise looked at him sadly and rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand.

"You okay?" she said. "No hallucinations, no nothing?"

Dean closed his eyes.

"Gimme a minute," he said.

"He's not here," Louise said gently. "He's gone. You're free, Dean. And he's never gonna get you again, even if I have to rip him apart with my bare hands."

Dean nodded. Louise caught him murmuring, "Not here, not here…" until his breathing slowed and he opened his eyes.

"Are you getting better, at least?" she said, wanting to look away from his haunted green eyes but unable to do so. "I mean, it's been months. And we haven't seen hide or hair of him…"

"Yeah, I'm getting better. It's happening less and less often. And…" Dean's jaw worked. "Thanks, Lou. For your help. For everything."

Louise smiled and punched him on the arm.

"Always, asshole. That's what I'm there for."

"Yeah, and being a huge bitch."

Before Louise could retort, their attention was caught by Sam staggering and falling. Louise and Dean sprinted over to catch him and carefully lower him to the ground.

"Sam! What's up?" Dean said.

"A woman," Sam panted, his eyes wide with horror. "Burning alive."

A quick flash of Mary burning shot through Louise's mind. She blinked and shook her head to clear it.

"At a gas station," Sam continued. "A woman's gonna kill herself."

"What do you mean, going to?" Andy demanded, his eyes just as wide as Sam's.

"Shut up!" Dean snapped.

"She gets triggered by a call on her cell," Sam said. "I don't know when. But if we keep an eye on this son of a bitch, he can't hurt anybody."

"But I didn't hurt anybody!" Andy protested.

"Not yet," Sam said darkly.

When a firetruck came screaming past, Dean and Louise went to stop the woman from offing herself as quickly as they could but they arrived just too late. However, this ruled Andy out as a suspect as he had been with Sam the whole time.

"So who else could it be?" Louise said in frustration.

"That's why we dig around, Lou!" Dean mocked. Louise rolled her eyes and got back into the Impala. Dean's face grew serious when he shut his door. "Louise, what did you do with Andy?"

"Nothing!" Louise said. Dean raised an eyebrow. "He just played some music – which was total crap, by the way, even crappier than the crappiest of yours – then felt guilty for hijacking me so he bought me a coffee and took me back to question you guys."

Dean looked disbelieving.

"Oh. That's alright, then. Cause if he had done anything to you, I'd have had to give him a slow, bloody death. I'm sure you understand, Lou, since you're my baby sister and I have to protect you."

"I don't need protecting!" Louise said, irritated. "And nothing bad happened! Sure, he used his Force on me a bit but it's all done and dusted. He used it on you too."

"Whatever. Let's dig, little sister."

-LW-

A little while later, Louise was reeling. After some digging around, they'd found that the woman who had died – Holly Beckett – had given birth to twins back in 1983 and put them up for adoption. It had been Andy's adoptive mother who had died in the fire and though both Holly and Dr Jennings, the man from Sam's vision who had apparently overseen the adoption, were connected to Andy, they didn't think he was the killer. Andy had easily gotten them into the records office to take a peek at the birth records and he had nearly fainted when he saw the face of his 'evil twin': Ansem Weems, one of his friends (though Ansem went by the name of Webber) and the one who had really been behind the recent murders.

In the car, on the way to confront Ansem, Sam had another vision, this time of Tracey jumping off a bridge. When they arrived, Sam told Louise and Dean to stay behind while he went to deal with Ansem, which Dean and Louise didn't protest.

"Hey, I'm not keen to get mind-whammied again," Louise said, holding up her hands.

Andy demanded to come and together, he and Sam went to deal with Ansem. Sam managed to shut Ansem up long enough to let Andy pull Tracey to safety and then they pulled Ansem out of the car and duct taped his mouth shut to prevent him from controlling anyone else.

However, to their utter shock, they found that Ansem could control people without needing to verbalise his commands. While he rambled on about how Yellow-Eyes had come to him in a dream and told him that he had big plans for the special children and that Ansem was going to kill off anyone who had come between him and Andy, Louise and Dean got into position with their guns. Dean had a powerful rifle, while Louise just had her own shotgun. Dean was the better shot, so he was going to be the one to shoot Ansem. Neither of them said the unsaid: that if Dean failed, they were both dead.

"I see you!" a voice called suddenly. Louise stiffened in horror and next to her, Dean did the same thing. "Buh bye!"

Louise was petrified as she unwillingly pulled out her gun and raised it to her temple, while Dean positioned the rifle under his chin.

"I'm sorry, Dean," Louise whimpered, tears in her eyes.

"What for?" he muttered, trying desperately to wrench the gun away from his chin. Louise squeezed her eyes shut and when a gunshot went off, she let out a wail, expecting the worst. However, when she opened her eyes and Dean was still alive, she let out a shaky laugh, threw her gun aside and tackled Dean to the ground.

"Get off me, Lou!" Dean pushed Louise off him and ruffled her hair, making her glare at him.

"Fine. Sorry for being happy that my brother's alive. Asshole."

"Bitch."

-LW-

After Andy used his powers to spin a believable story to the cops, Sam gave him their cell numbers in case he needed something and then he left with Dean and Louise. However, Sam was now in full-on brooding mode and Dean and Louise had to deal with it.

"I was right," he said. "Andy is a killer after all."

"No, he's a hero," Dean said. "He saved his girlfriend's life. Hell, he saved me and Lou!"

"But he still wasted someone," Sam argued.

"He's not a psycho, though. He was pushed into it."

"Ansem was pushed into it. Max was pushed. Hell, I was pushed when Jess died. Right circumstances, everyone's capable of murder and maybe that's what Azazel's doing. Pushing us. Finding ways to break us."

"Sam, we don't know what Azazel wants! And if I knew anything, I'd tell you!"

"Dean, I heard you before, when Andy made you tell him the truth. You're just as scared as I am."

"That doesn't count, man! I was being roofied! I call a do-over."

"You're such a child, Dean," Louise sighed, though she was smiling faintly.

"Look, Sam, we just keep doing what we're doing: find that evil son of a bitch and kill it. We've got the Colt and we've got one bullet left."

-LW-

"Dean! Did you take the Colt?"

"No! Why the hell would I, Lou?"

"Sammy!"

"What?"

"Where's the Colt?"

"How should I know? Isn't it where we kept it?"

"No! Bobby!"

"How should I know, girl? Haven't touched that cupboard since ya put the Colt in it."

"Well, I haven't touched it! And there's no way that any demons could've gotten through the Devil's Trap!"

"So you're saying that the Colt's gone?"

"No, Dean, I'm just fucking with you! Yes, it's gone! Who the hell could've taken it?"

-LW-

"Good work, Castiel," Zachariah smiled as Castiel laid the Colt down on nir desk. "You've done well."

"I don't understand," Castiel frowned. "Why are we depriving the Winchesters of their weapon against Azazel? Would it not be a good thing for the demon to die?"

"Of course it would!" Zachariah said placatingly. "There's nothing better than the death of a filthy abomination! But we can't kill Azazel now or we'll never find out what his plans are. For now, the demon remains alive. Understood?"

"I don't understand," Castiel repeated.

"You're not meant to, Castiel. You're just meant to follow orders."

"But this is wrong. We should kill Azazel now, before he can enact his plans and we could do it through the Winchesters…if they just had the Colt…"

Zachariah sighed. Castiel was falling into old habits again! What was it about this particular angel that made him so damn defiant? How many times would they have to torture him into obedience again? And why couldn't ne just kill the irksome angel now? Sending out a mental message to the angel ne needed, ne leaned across nir desk and clasped nir hands.

"Because those are your orders, Castiel. Follow them or there will be severe consequences."

There was a knock on the door of nir office – though ne didn't really have an 'office', per se. That was simply what it would look like if a human happened to be there. Human and angel perceptions of Heaven were very different. After a moment, the door opened and another angel stepped through, nir back stiff and straight even in nir true form. Zachariah smiled.

"Ah, Naomi. I believe that Castiel requires further re-education before he forgets his place. Again."

Naomi smiled and nodded.

"As you wish, Zachariah."


	23. Sugar Rush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just shameless, pure fluff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I'M SO SORRY FOR WHAT I DID TO MY CAS BABY! But Cas has a history of never doing what he's told and I don't see him willingly stepping aside and letting a demon like Azazel carry out his plans – with Lilith, he didn't know her plans until the end and then he chickened out and obeyed Heaven to allow Lucifer to rise.
> 
> (Also I didn't intend for this whole chapter to be devoted to Louise and Castiel but it kinda just happened and I really wanted an adorable Cas scene so sue me)
> 
> And I posted a third installment to my Henry Winchester Chronicles (called Aftermath), so if you're a fan of that series then go and check it out!

**Chapter 23. Sugar Rush**

"You're serious?" Meg exclaimed. Louise sighed and switched hands so that she was holding the phone with her left hand, giving her right a break.

"Deadly. I don't know who could've taken it! Sam, Dean and Bobby know that we've gotta save that last bullet and I know I haven't touched it…and the cupboard was surrounded by Devil's Traps and had one on the inside to turn it into a lockbox. No demon should've been able to get through it!"

"Maybe Azazel had a human ally. Someone that he bullied into helping him. He could have forced them to get the Colt for him."

"You're suggesting that a human broke in? I'd like to see them get past Bobby. It'd have to have been someone who could move quiet enough to get around him."

"Demonic help? I don't know, Louise. I'm just suggesting things."

"Yeah…I know. Sorry for being such a hardass."

"No sweat. It was the only thing you had that could kill Azazel. I'd be freaking out too. Tell me, how's Dean?"

"Fine. Why do you ask?"

"I had a demon inside me too. The nightmares have been absolute hell. But I'm getting there – I'm seeing a therapist and sticking to the cult story. And it's really helping."

Louise sighed, feeling guilty for forgetting about Meg since dropping her off in Andover.

"Dean's getting better too. Sometimes, he just needs to be reminded that Azazel's gone. Listen…I'm sorry I haven't been there all that much these past few months. I've just never had a friend for longer than a month, is all. I'm not good with the whole 'having friends' thing."

"It's cool. I – I was sort of avoiding you too. I mean, after – after what happened…"

"Don't worry about it, Meg. Really. Not like I was complaining or anything. But…it didn't feel right. I mean, I liked it but…I didn't? If it makes sense?"

"No, I understand. Forget about it?"

"Already forgotten. I – I'll drop in sometime if I'm near Andover."

"I'd like that. Anyway, I have to go. My sister Riley's nagging me to take her to the cinema and I promised I would. Talk to you later?"

"Sure thing. See ya."

Louise hung up, grinning widely. What was this weird feeling? It couldn't possibly be a crush – that kiss had proven it and the thought of being in a relationship had never really appealed to her before – so why did she just really want to hang out with Meg and do cheesy stuff and do basically everything sappy, just with no romantic or sexual strings involved? Oh, well. For now, all Louise cared about was the huge pizza she planned on ordering and smuggling to the guest bedroom before she was forced to share with her brothers.

-LW-

"Louise."

Louise jumped violently and fell off the bed.

"Ouch! Fucking hell!" She picked herself up, groaning, to see Castiel standing at the foot of the bed, staring at her inquisitively. "Oh, so now you show up. Where've you been for the past two weeks?"

"I have been…busy with my Heavenly duties," Castiel replied after a moment.

"Gee. Nice to know that my angelic babysitter trusts me enough to let me off my leash."

Castiel's eyes flashed and he advanced on her. Louise gulped when she saw his true form pulse with what could only be described as anger.

"You think too highly of yourself, Louise Winchester," he hissed. "You are but a tiny part of my orders. My loyalty is first and foremost to Heaven and I will not come running when you call like a common servant. Especially with your…heritage."

He took a step back. Louise blinked at his sudden attitude change.

"It's time for your first training session. Come with me."

He stepped towards her and went to place two fingers on her forehead.

"Wait! Hold up!" Louise said. "First off, I'm still in my pyjamas." She gestured to her oversized Fall Out Boy shirt and black pants. "Second, I haven't had breakfast and we humans kinda need to eat. And third, I'm not going anywhere with you until you've had a good old American breakfast."

"I don't require sustenance."

"That's not the point, Cas."

"Cas?" Castiel tilted his head.

"Yeah. That's what Dean calls you for short. Do you mind?"

"Yes."

"Great. Anyway, Cas, the point is that you said you haven't been down here in two thousand years. What you need, my friend, is a good human experience and nothing can go wrong with breakfast."

Rummaging around in one of her bags, Louise pulled out a black Panic! At the Disco shirt and black slacks.

"I'm not your friend," Castiel said. Louise rolled her eyes.

"It's an expression."

There was a pause.

"Why do you wear suit pants when Sam and Dean wear jeans? Is it a human female custom? I was under the impression that females wore skirts and dresses."

"What the hell are you still doing in here? Get out! What happened to pure and innocent angels?"

Castiel just stared.

"I will return in ten minutes."

He vanished. Louise shook her head.

"Fucking angels. Why did I decide to summon one?"

-LW-

"I don't understand. Why did you ask me to bring you here? If you required sustenance then we could have gone to a diner in Sioux Falls."

"C'mon, Cas!" Louise gestured wildly. "This place right here in Austin has the best pancakes this side of the US! Nobody does pancakes like the Texans do!"

Louise entered the diner, Castiel following. She chose a quiet booth near the back of the diner and grinned when Castiel sat down across from her, looking positively uncomfortable in this new environment. A waitress noticed them almost immediately and bustled over.

"What'll it be, hon?"

"Short stack with strawberry syrup and a coffee, black," Louise ordered. "What about you, Cas?"

Castiel stared at the waitress.

"I don't eat," he said. Louise rolled her eyes to the heavens.

"He'll take a short stack as well," she said. The waitress nodded, scribbled their order on her pad and left after one last curious look at Castiel.

"Why did you order food for me? I do not require it," the angel said.

"Doesn't mean you can't have it," Louise said. "Remember, you're having a human experience. And humans eat."

Castiel passed the time by staring around at literally everything, as though pondering the meaning of everything around him. Louise amused herself by tossing a packet of sugar into the air and pretending that she was cool and could levitate it like Jean Grey.

"You can learn telekinesis," Castiel said suddenly. Startled, Louise fumbled the catch.

"No way! Really?"

"It is a very basic angel power. I feel that you should be able to develop it quickly."

Louise grinned.

"Awesome."

Just then, the waitress returned with their order.

"Short stack for the gentleman." She placed a plate in front of Castiel, who stared at the pancakes and tilted his head. "And short stack, strawberry syrup and black coffee for you."

"Thanks," Louise said gratefully. She smothered her pancakes in strawberry syrup, a gleeful grin on her face, and then cut a large chunk out of them and stuffed them into her mouth. The moan that erupted from her was almost dirty.

"Why aren't you eating?" she said when she swallowed her mouthful of food.

"I don't –"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. You don't need to eat. Doesn't mean you can't. Now, c'mon, give 'em a go!"

Castiel continued to stare at his stack of pancakes for a moment. Then he picked up his knife and fork, carefully cut a small portion and popped it into his mouth. An odd expression came over his face.

"Well?" Louise said. Castiel swallowed his food.

"It's…strange," he said. "I can taste each individual molecule in the food. I'm not sure if I like it."

Louise blinked.

"Uh…okay? Can you – I dunno – downsize your senses or something? Nothing tastes good unless you're tasting the whole thing."

Castiel tilted his head, puzzled.

"Look, flour tastes like crap on its own. And you'd probably hack up a lung if you just had raw vanilla. But mix everything together? You get this little slice of heaven." She gestured to her pancakes and cut another large chunk out.

"I don't understand what Heaven has to do with food."

Louise groaned.

"Just dull your damn senses and try the pancakes again."

Castiel closed his eyes for a moment, cut another portion of pancakes and raised the fork to his – well, Jimmy's – lips. His eyes widened and his true form pulsed pleasantly, his wings spreading in surprise.

"This is…very nice," he said once he had swallowed his food. Louise grinned widely.

"See! Told ya so!"

When Castiel cut some more of his pancakes, Louise quickly drizzled strawberry syrup over the top of his portion.

"See, Sam and Dean'll tell you that maple syrup is the way to eat pancakes. But, bless their poor little hearts, they know nothing. You eat pancakes, you need strawberry. It's just how it's done."

Castiel eyed his fork dubiously but took a bite anyway. His eyes widened even further and a small sound escaped from his mouth.

"This is…incredible," he murmured. "I had no idea that human food could be so…amazing."

"First lesson in humanity," Louise beamed, waving her fork at him. "Food is awesome. It's also great for avoiding unwanted conversations 'cause it's rude to talk with food in your mouth, so if you just keep stuffing your face then you can get out of talking to pretty much anyone."

Louise felt a warm sense of pride when Castiel, looking intrigued, nodded. She snickered when he all but snatched the strawberry syrup and drowned his stack, leaving her with practically none left, and proceeded to shovel pancake into his mouth as fast as he could while somehow still looking dignified.

"Did I turn you into a short stack junkie?" Louise grinned.

"I don't know what a junkie is. But I do know that I need more of this delicious human food."

The icing on the pancake was when he pulled Louise's cup of coffee towards him and took a small sip. Apparently, he liked coffee as much as pancakes because he then proceeded to drain Louise's cup, staring down at it with wide eyes.

"Sure, just take my morning caffeine," Louise said sarcastically, flagging down their waitress and ordering another two coffees. "Don't you get full?"

"The physical needs and sensations of my vessel do not bother me," Castiel said, his mouth bulging with pancakes. He swallowed his mouthful and then grimaced. "My apologies, Louise. I should not have spoken with my mouth full."

"Eh, knock yourself out. Sam, Dean and I do it all the time. We never said we were polite or anything."

The closest thing to a smile that Louise had seen on Castiel's face appeared when the waitress returned with their coffees and Castiel practically inhaled his second cup. Louise made sure to quickly drink hers before Castiel could get any ideas.

"I desire more pancakes and coffee," Castiel said when his plate and cup were empty.

"Okay, for one, that's not healthy. And two, I've only got twenty bucks in my pocket and my credit card can only take so much. Fake credit cards are a pain in the ass."

"So you steal?" Castiel said disapprovingly.

"Dude, does it look like hunting pays well? We need to live somehow. And besides, without my 'stealing', you wouldn't have your new pancake and coffee addiction."

Castiel's disapproving look faded slightly but he still didn't look happy. Louise took another bite of her pancakes, trying to focus more on Castiel's true form so that she didn't have to see not-Jimmy even though staring at Castiel's true form for too long overwhelmed her and gave her a headache. She noticed Castiel eyeing up her stack and so, with a sigh, she cut a huge chunk out of the half-stack she had left and pulled Castiel's plate to her, dumping the chunk onto it.

"Knock yourself out," she said, pushing her own plate towards him. Castiel fell on the pancakes like a ravenous man at a buffet and Louise even had to remind him that while he didn't need to breathe, everyone else did and people would grow very worried if he didn't take 'breathing breaks' in between mouthfuls. Castiel slowed down enough to breathe every so often, which Louise counted as a victory.

"This is the most incredible food I have ever tasted," Castiel declared when Louise dragged him up to the counter to pay. The waitress beamed widely.

"Glad you think so, hon."

"He doesn't get out much," Louise smirked, accepting her change. "C'mon, Cas."

As soon as they had left the diner, Castiel grabbed her by the arm and they took off back to Sioux Falls. Louise stumbled when she landed, unused to Angel Air, and so she didn't notice Bobby and Dean swearing loudly or Sam's mug crashing to the ground.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean yelled. "Warn a guy next time!"

"Least he didn't appear in your room," Louise said, finally regaining her balance. "Nice breakfast, guys."

"Better than yours," Dean retorted, breaking off a bit of his toast. "You haven't even eaten."

"Louise made me take her to a diner in Austin," Castiel said, looking at the toast with distaste. "They have the most delicious pancakes and coffee and we _will_ be returning there every day for breakfast."

"Yeah…" Louise said as Sam and Dean complained about unfairness. "Remember that money problem I told you about, Cas?"

Castiel waved her off.

"I will take care of money. But you wanted to school me in 'humanity'? Then you will take me to that diner every day."

He narrowed his eyes at Louise, who gulped.

"Sure. Okay. Fine."

Castiel nodded in satisfaction.

"Good. I will be waiting outside for your first training session. Don't keep me waiting."

He vanished. Sam, Dean and Bobby stared at Louise.

"What the hell was that, girl?"

"I…may have turned an angel into a short stack addict?"

She just got more stares and she grinned sheepishly.

"Whoops?"


	24. Obligatory Training Chapter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I cannot write training chapters. I absolutely loathe them with all of my being. They are on the level of 'obligatory Sue shopping scene in which thousands are spent on purple prosy-described clothes and speshul wands and epic pocket dimensional trunks' (whoops, I think a bit of Harry Stu slipped in there…). Maybe it's due to the sheer amount of 'Harry Stu and his friends Hermione Sue, Neville Stu and Luna Sue are the reincarnations of the Founders and get cool pets and weapons and powahs and a speshul time-bending trunk to stay in and train with their wittle goblin friends and yadda, yadda, more clichéd crap' fics that I've read but I just cannot do it. However, I will try my best but don't get your hopes up…
> 
> (And no I'm not bitter from all the crap fics I've read why would you say that)
> 
> AND HAS ANYONE SEEN THE NEW S11 TRAILER I CAN'T EVEN WHAT ARE THEY DOING TO MY POOR CAS BABY
> 
> Thanks to tkdgrl223 for your comment :)

**Chapter 24. Obligatory Training Chapter**

"Yay! I did it!" Louise beamed when she finally managed to levitate a small boulder above her head for more than a few seconds without burning herself out. "Look, Cas! I'm doing it!"

Castiel nodded. He no longer expressed irritation at the nickname that he had been bestowed by the Winchesters (though he had glared at Dean for being the one to come up with it) and Louise thought that she might like the angel now that he had mellowed out.

"Good work. You have finally surpassed mediocrity."

Louise blinked and the boulder fell, hitting her on the head.

"Ouch! What the hell was that for, Cas? Would it kill you to give a proper compliment?"

Castiel frowned. Louise groaned.

"Oh, please tell me that they compliment you up in those fluffy white clouds."

"I…have not been given a compliment in centuries. Is it customary to compliment each other so freely?"

"Well, it's kinda how you know that you're doing good," Louise said. She paused, trying to think of something nice to say about Castiel – because really, not getting a compliment in hundreds of years was kind of pathetic. Hell, even John had dropped the odd compliment once in a while!

"You…have awesome wings?" she said after a moment. Castiel froze, staring at her, and then his face split into the first true smile that Louise had seen. She found herself grinning back, caught up in the moment, and she didn't miss how his black feathers puffed up.

"Thank you, Louise," Castiel said. "Nobody has ever complimented my wings. Black is…not a common colour."

"Honestly? It suits you," Louise said. "I can't imagine you with any other colour. Besides, black is badass. I mean, look at me – black's pretty much all I wear, apart from my jacket!"

Castiel's grin widened.

"So why doesn't anybody ever compliment black wings? Because they're seriously awesome."

Castiel's smile faded.

"Black wings are looked down upon," he said. Frowning, Louise sat down on the dusty ground and gestured for Castiel to do the same. She crossed her legs and let her shoulders slump but Castiel's legs were left stretched out and his back was stiff. "They are seen as a sign of betrayal and wrong intent. The last angel to have black wings was Azazel."

Louise's mouth dropped. Her new angel buddy had the same wings as Azazel's? But Castiel was nothing like Azazel. There was no way he'd turn out like that yellow-eyed son of a bitch.

"The most desirable colour is pure white. That is the colour of Michael's wings."

"Michael? He's an archangel, right?"

"Yes." Castiel looked pleased that Louise had bothered to research. "Ne is the ruler of Heaven."

"Ne?"

"Angels do not have a gender in their true forms. They usually prefer to be called by gender neutral pronouns until they take a vessel, at which point they will be referred to by their vessel's pronouns."

"Oh. Anyway, you were saying?"

"Michael is the one that gave the order for your life to be spared."

Louise felt a rush of gratitude to the unknown Michael.

"Well, tell him – them – uh, you know what I mean – thanks from me. I kinda like living."

"I will tell nem that when I see nem."

"So, what other colours are there?"

And so Castiel launched into a long explanation of angels and their wing colours, though he was careful to say that this was just as close an approximation that he could make as possible – there were no words to describe just what angel wings looked like.

"Gabriel's wings were the orange colour of sunsets," Castiel said, a faraway look in his eyes. "Each archangel had different coloured wings. As I said, Michael's are the purest white in existence. Raphael's are a dark red but they shimmer brightly, as though encrusted with gemstones. Sariel's gleam like liquid silver and mercury and Lucifer's…Lucifer's were like shards of ice. They were a pale blue colour and glimmered brighter than the brightest stars – that is, until ne was cast into Hell and nir wing were scorched with hellfire. Ne was always the most beautiful angel in Heaven, surpassing even Michael."

Jimmy's face was expressionless but Louise could sense the turmoil and sadness in Castiel's true form. She reached out and put a hand on his arm.

"Did you ever meet Lucifer?" she said quietly, not even fazed at the knowledge that the Devil really did exist. Castiel nodded.

"Once, many millennia ago. Uriel – a fellow angel – and I encountered nem in Heaven. Ne had always been one of our Father's most trusted angels but by that time, ne had allowed nir hatred of humankind to corrupt nem. Ne told us all about how humans were filthy creatures who were not worthy of our Father's love."

"Did you buy it?"

"…No. Humans…they have always fascinated me, even if I have not been allowed to observe them at all times. Much has changed in two thousand years…"

Louise grinned.

"That's humans for ya. Always changing. Hell, ten years ago, you'd be hard-pressed to find one of these." She pulled out her phone and held it up. "Hey, Cas? If you're allowed to give spoilers…what's Heaven like?"

Castiel blinked.

"I've never been asked that before…" the angel murmured. "Well…it's beautiful. It's not at all what humans think it is like. It's an endless realm, full of billions of personal heavens for each soul. You live out eternity in your best memories – your very own paradise."

"Do you ever get to see your loved ones again?" Louise was utterly fascinated.

"Not unless the angels permit it." Castiel's blue eyes were glazed, as though he was a million miles away, and his wings spread behind him absently. "Only soul mates get to share a Heaven but those are rare. John and Mary Winchester were soul mates, so they are together even in Heaven."

Louise's grin widened. She was glad that her dad was reunited with his wife – he deserved it, even if he had been a bit of an ass.

"You, Sam and Dean are soul mates, did you know?" Castiel said suddenly. "I can see it in your souls when I look at you…"

"We're _what_?" Louise interrupted. "What's that mean? Me and my brothers? We're not –"

"It isn't always a romantic bond. More often than not, identical twins are soul mates – people talk about how twins seem to have a special bond and that is it. John and Catherine Winchester also had a soul bond – yes, it is possible for one person to be bound to two or more people. Catherine shares a Heaven with John and Mary even though she and Mary are not soul mates. Do not fear, Louise. It is a beautiful thing. Your souls are bound so tightly that they cannot be separated, even in death."

"But if one of us dies…"

"The others will carry on."

Louise forced herself not to hum 'Welcome to the Black Parade' or 'Carry On Wayward Son', though it was very hard not to.

"But it won't feel right. They won't feel right until they are reunited with the other soul."

"So that's why Dad became obsessed with killing Azazel?" Louise said. Castiel nodded.

"Soul mates are very rare – nobody controls them. That sort of bond cannot be created artificially. It is the closeness between you, Sam and Dean– despite all of your arguments and mistakes and betrayals – that created this bond. You would do absolutely anything for each other, including selling your soul without a thought, even if you currently loathed one another." Castiel smiled. "You should feel blessed, Louise. It is an honour to have one soul mate, let alone two."

Louise couldn't help but grin.

"Thanks for the behind the scenes tour, Cas." She nudged his arm. "You're not half-bad."

"You are not…half-bad either, Louise." Castiel shook his head and then went to stand up. "We must resume our training."

"We've been training all morning," Louise complained. "No, make that all week. How about another lesson in humanity? It's taken me all week to levitate that boulder."

"I have my orders –"

"And they say nothing about training all the time. C'mon, Cas. Lighten up a bit!"

Castiel sighed and sank back down.

"Lie down, Cas. Yeah, that's it. On your back."

"What are we doing?"

"One of the most mind-numbing, pointless things that humans have ever come up with. Cloud watching."

"…What is the point of watching clouds?"

"You're meant to point out shapes that you can see in the clouds. Like that one!" She pointed at a cloud to her right, above Castiel. "Looks like a rabbit, doesn't it?"

Castiel squinted.

"It looks like a mass of water vapour," he said bluntly. Louise sighed loudly. "I have to dull my senses again, right?"

"Yep."

There was a pause.

"Yes…I see how it could resemble a rabbit." He pointed at a different cloud. "That one looks like two angels engaging in battle."

Louise squinted at the lumpy, misshapen cloud.

"Uh…"

"Oh. I forgot that you have never seen an angel's true form without a vessel before."

"What do they look like?"

"It…I sincerely doubt that I can explain. Unlike our wings, there is truly no explanation in any human language. I could try and explain it in Enochian – our language – but you would not understand."

"Go for it."

Castiel frowned and a stream of harsh syllables came out of his mouth. Louise blinked and rubbed her ears. Most of it had been garbled but she was absolutely certain that she had heard 'animal' and 'celestial' in there – though even that was the best English translation that she could come up with.

"I think I understood a bit of it…"

Castiel stared.

"Interesting. So you have the ability to understand Enochian."

"Fun times. Hey, how about we go inside? I'm starving."

"As you wish."

Louise and Castiel stood up and Louise let out a laugh when she saw that all of Castiel's back was dirty, especially his hair.

"I don't understand what is so funny, Louise."

"Oh, come here! Turn around, Cas."

When Castiel turned around, Louise began to beat his trench coat lightly, sending clouds of dust into the air. She coughed when she inhaled some of it but continued to brush Castiel down, until his hair was the only dirty part left. She solved that by ruffling his – Jimmy's – dark hair until it was clean.

"You are also dirty," Castiel observed when he turned around again. "Is this is a human custom?"

"Uh –"

"Turn around."

Blinking, Louise obeyed him and then she felt his hands cautiously brushing down her leather jacket.

"You can go harder," she laughed, aware of the unintentional double meaning and feeling slightly mortified. "I'm not made of glass."

Castiel's hands became firmer, dusting her off carefully. She tensed when he move down to her lower half but, as though sensing her discomfort, he moved straight to the back of her legs and cleaned her slacks, leaving Louise to brush the dust off her butt gratefully. When he stood back up, he began to comb his fingers through her hair to dislodge the dust and Louise smiled and closed her eyes. It felt…nice.

"I could have cleaned us off with a touch," Castiel said, ruffling her hair slightly to get rid of the last of the dust.

"Human experience, Cas. Most of us can't just poof ourselves clean."

When Castiel was done, Louise turned around and was pleasantly surprised to see a small smile on his face.

"That was very enjoyable," he said. "I like doing…human things."

Louise grinned widely and punched him on the arm. Castiel stared at his arm and then punched Louise back even harder.

"Ouch!" Louise cried, agony lancing through her arm.

"My apologies." Castiel touched two fingers to her forehead and the pain disappeared, replaced by refreshing coolness seeping throughout her.

"Not that hard, Cas. Humans can't heal like you guys can."

Castiel opened his mouth to say something but then paused, tilting his head and looking upwards.

"I have to go," he said. "My superiors are calling me back to Heaven."

"That sucks. See you around, then?"

"Yes. See you later, Louise."

Castiel vanished and Louise trudged back to Bobby's house, a fuzzy warmth spreading throughout her whole body as though she'd drunk a cup of hot chocolate.


	25. Not-So-Happy Reunions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise is reminded that Cas can be a badass when he wants to be. And then crap hits the fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I tend to describe Jimmy!Castiel more than Castiel's true form because just because Louise can see his true form all the time doesn't mean that she's actively paying attention to it. To her, it can get overwhelming if she focuses on Castiel's true form all the time, so that's why Jimmy's body is the default (though I did touch on that in chapter 23).

**Chapter 25. Not-So-Happy Reunions**

Louise really did hate angels. Sure, Castiel was one of the only ones who didn't want to smoke Louise's ass for being an abomination (something she was still getting used to) but would it _kill_ him to go easy on her?

"Oh, come on!" Louise complained when Castiel pinned her yet again using only his powers. "Can't you let me win for _once_? It's been two weeks!"

"My orders are to train you to the best of my abilities, Louise," Castiel said with a hard look as Louise struggled to her feet, groaning. "Going easy on you won't help you in any way."

"It'd boost my battered ego, that's for sure," Louise muttered. "Hey, do I get a cool sword like you?"

Castiel gave her a 'Look'. Louise had been surprised that the usually cute, mild-mannered angel, who hadn't lost his temper since that first time popping into her room, was capable of pulling something like that off but hey, even puppies apparently had bitch faces.

"Only angels are allowed blades," Castiel said. "I highly doubt you would even be allowed to touch a blade without suffering the consequences. Angels hate nephilim enough – how do you think they would react if a half-angel abomination ran at them brandishing an angel blade?"

"Eh, you've got a point," Louise admitted. "But can you quit with the A-word, please? It makes me feel insecure about myself and damages my self-esteem."

"No it doesn't," Castiel said plainly.

' _Is being a humour killer an angel thing?'_ Louise wondered.

Ever since her very own angelic Charles Xavier had started training her, Louise had noticed that her physical state in general had improved. She seemed to be faster and stronger and had more stamina, though she still had her limits and grew tired like every other person. She also found that she seemed to have better resistance to injuries, as she'd taken a hit from Castiel that would normally have shattered her forearm but had only left her with a severe sprain until he healed her. Hey, she wasn't complaining!

Lately, Castiel had been training her to utilise her telekinesis which, she actually found, came far easier to her now. However, she still wasn't all that powerful and she was sure that the day she finally managed to beat Castiel with her telekinesis would be Judgement Day. Castiel seemed to take perverse pleasure in beating her down again and again and again, telling her to focus on keeping her hand gestures to a minimum like the angels did.

"What will you do when you are bound and restrained and you can't move your hands?" Castiel said, pinning a swearing Louise to a tree yet again with his powers. "If you can restrict your motions to simply opening or closing your hand or even moving your fingers, you will be far better off in combat than if you sweep your arms and hands around like you currently do."

Louise bared her teeth and tried to break free but failed. When she heard familiar laughter nearby, she was about ready to kill a bitch.

"This is just perfect!" Dean said gleefully. "I've gotta get my camera! She still hasn't beaten you yet?"

"When she learns to focus her powers through smaller gestures, she will stand a chance of besting me," Castiel said neutrally.

"Stand a chance? That doesn't mean she will, does it?" Sam said. Louise could just tell that her little brother was also grinning.

"Assholes," she muttered.

"Most likely not. It is one thing to stand up to an angel but another thing entirely to beat one."

Hey, Castiel was distracted! Louise could feel her invisible bonds begin to loosen, so she narrowed her eyes at her right hand and twitched her fingers. Castiel staggered and this break in concentration allowed Louise to push herself off the tree and dive onto the angel, pinning him to the ground with her knife at his neck.

"Impressive," Castiel admitted. "However, you should never leave an opponent armed." His angel blade flashed up and he hit Louise in the face with the hilt, making her swear and fall off him, clutching at her throbbing head. While she was distracted, Castiel jumped up and, in one swift motion, was behind Dean with his arm around her brother's body, pinning his arms to his side, and his blade at Dean's throat.

"Crap," Dean muttered as Sam jumped away.

"Hey! What gives?" Louise growled, pushing herself to her feet.

"Another lesson," Castiel said, digging his blade into Dean's throat. "Your opponent will attempt to throw you off your guard through any means necessary."

"Yeah, I know." Louise crossed her arms. "I've had it done to me with those two knuckleheads enough. You mind letting Dean go before he wets himself?"

"Hey!" Dean glared.

"If you want your brother back then take him," Castiel challenged. Louise was glad that he had finally started to refer to Sam and Dean as her brothers rather than cousins. "If I was an enemy then do you think I would let him go because you asked nicely?"

Louise's eyes narrowed at the angel and her fingers twitched. The hand holding the blade at Dean's throat twitched and moved but, to her utter frustration, Dean still remained Castiel's captive.

"Thanks," Dean drawled. "I can really count on you to save my ass from now on, sis."

"Shut up, asshole," Louise snapped. "Look, Cas, I know he's a douche but can you just let him go?"

Sam snorted despite himself.

"I'm still not convinced," Castiel said. To Louise's horror, his blade dug deeper into Dean's throat and her brother let out a hiss when blood began to trickle from the wound. A rush of energy suddenly surged through Louise's veins and she held out her hand and concentrated with all her might. She couldn't let her brother die! (Or, at the least, suffer injuries any worse than injured dignity). Castiel's sword hand twitched and then, with one final effort, it was wrenched away from Dean, who took the opportunity to force his way out of the grip of Castiel's other hand.

"Took you long enough," Sam commented. Dean, massaging his throat, scowled at him.

"I am impressed," Castiel said, healing his sword wrist – in Louise's power surge, she had accidentally broken it. "That was a good plan, Dean."

"What? A _plan_?" Louise whirled around to face Dean. "You _planned_ for that?"

"What? We always do better when the other two are in danger!" Dean said. "Besides, I knew that Cas wouldn't kill or seriously hurt me. Er…you wouldn't have, would you?"

Castiel just raised his eyebrows.

"Next time, you mind running plans like that by me so I don't freak out?" Louise snapped, crossing her arms. Though she did have to admit that Dean did have a point…

"If you knew beforehand then you would not have believed that Dean was in any danger and you wouldn't have reacted like that," Castiel said. "You need to learn to be able to do that all the time, without your family being in danger."

Louise just scowled.

"I believe that, according to what you've taught me, it is customary to offer a compliment at this point, for encouragement," Castiel said. "You did well, Louise. Far better than before. Keep that up and you will be able to hold your own in battles against monsters and possibly lower level angels."

Louise swelled with pride and she couldn't help but grin at Castiel.

"However, you still have a long way to go," the angel said, promptly deflating Louise's ego. "You will never be as powerful as an angel but you should be able to hold your own against them."

"Uh…thanks?"

They stood in awkward silence.

"You get the afternoon off?" Louise said to break it. Castiel frowned and looked up, as Louise had learned that he always did when listening to 'angel radio' (his mental connection to other angels).

"No. I must return as soon as I am able. I will be back tomorrow morning for breakfast as usual."

Once Castiel had flapped off, Louise turned to Sam and Dean.

"So? What'd you guys think?" she said.

"He's a good teacher," Sam said, still staring at where Castiel had disappeared. "You're getting a lot better, Lou."

Louise sighed.

"I meant about Cas. He's mellowed out a bit since we first summoned him."

"He's still a bit of an uptight dick," Dean said. Louise crossed her arms.

"Not really. He smiles a lot more these days."

"Well, you two may be bosom buddies but I don't think he even likes me. And I know that he's got something against Sammy. Have you seen the way he looks at Sam?"

Louise shot a sympathetic look at Sam, who was now looking up at the sky. She knew that the guy practically hero-worshipped angels and other divine entities and to have an angel show nothing but disdain…man, that had to hurt.

"He looked at me like that at first 'cause of my blood," Louise said. "Maybe it's something to do with Sam's powers?"

"Yeah!" Sam said. "I mean, Azazel said he had plans for me, right? Maybe he's got something to do with my visions? And if angels hate demons so much…"

"I'll ask him next time he's down," Louise said. "I mean, I dunno if he'll tell me but hey, no harm in trying."

-LW-

"Can I ask you something?" Louise panted after her next training session, slumping against a tree while an unaffected Castiel stood next to her. He held out a water bottle and she took it and gulped ice cold water down gratefully. "Thanks."

"Of course. What do you wish to know, Louise?"

"Why do you hate Sam so much?"

"I don't –"

"Don't give me that crap. Dean and I've noticed how you look at Sam like he's dirt on your shoe. Hell, even Sammy's noticed. The kid's always believed in a higher power and divine intervention more than the rest of us and he finally meets an angel but gets treated like trash? C'mon, Cas. You know what that does to someone's self-esteem."

Castiel was rigid.

"It isn't that I don't want to tell you," he said. "I cannot. I have my orders."

"Yeah? Well, I have a brother who already feels crap about himself because a huge ass demon has plans for him," Louise retorted. "He thinks that the visions he has are connected to Azazel and that makes him feel crap enough. Then to have an angel treat him like scum? Seriously, man."

Castiel stared at Louise unblinkingly. She held up her hands.

"Okay. I get it. Hardass big boss angels and all. But what can you tell me without getting your ass kicked?"

Castiel's jaw worked and he looked away.

"If we return to Sam and Dean, I will tell you what I know," he finally forced out. "Sam has earned that much."

Louise beamed.

"Thank you, Cas!" She hugged Castiel, who remained stiff as a post.

"Why are you squeezing me with your body?"

"Uh…it's a hug."

"Oh."

Silence.

"This is the part where you hug back, Cas."

Slowly, after a moment, Castiel's arms came up to encircle her loosely, which she supposed was the best she'd get. She stepped away after a moment, only to have Castiel press two fingers to her forehead and send them both tumbling through wherever he went when he flew. She didn't even stagger when they landed in the living room, making Sam and Dean jump and her internally cheer at how much better she'd gotten at landings.

"Louise has asked me to tell you just why I appear to loathe Sam," Castiel announced. Sam immediately sat up straighter and Dean set down his beer. "As a common angel, I am not privy to a lot of the information that the seraphs and archangels are. But what I do know is that for decades, Azazel has been visiting certain children when they turn six months old and he…taints them with demon blood."

Sam had gone chalk white. Dean was gripping the arm of the sofa so hard that his knuckles were pale.

"A-Are you sure?" Louise said hoarsely. Sam was infected with demon blood?

"Yes. I have not been given this information by my superiors but I managed to surmise it."

"Then what was that about orders?"

"I – I presumed that my superiors would not want me to talk about this. But as they have not given me explicit orders…"

"Are you sure?" Sam croaked.

"Positive. We have been aware of Azazel visiting children on the night of their six month birthday but we were not allowed to interfere. We were unsure of what he was doing until I encountered Sam and saw the taint in his soul. What we still don't know is why he is doing this. We know that he has a grand plan and we are trying to figure out what it is."

Sam was frozen in his seat.

"Sammy?" Louise said softly.

"Demon blood," Sam whispered. "I – I'm –"

"Don't you dare say that you're a freak!" Dean barked. "Or that you're evil or a murderer or anything! All that blood's been doing is giving you visions! Max Miller and Ansem Weems – they chose to use their powers to hurt people. You've been using yours to save people!"

"Yes." Castiel had the barest hint of an apologetic look on his face, which surprised Louise – she'd never seen him apologetic about anything! "We were worried that the demon would begin to…corrupt you. But it has not. As Dean said, you have been utilising your visions in order to help others. I – I appear to have misjudged you, Sam, purely by the taint on your soul, and I apologise for that."

Sam's answering smile was bright enough to light up a room and Louise beamed.

"See, Sammy?" she said. "The angel doesn't think you're evil, so quit thinking that you're some sort of monster!"

"I have to go," Castiel said suddenly. "My superiors are calling. See you later, Louise."

Once he was gone, Sam let out a shaky laugh.

"Well," he commented. "That's a weight off my shoulders. I don't feel any better about the 'being tainted with demon blood' –" he grimaced, "– but at least I know _why_ I'm getting the visions."

"It is our choices that reflect who we are far more than our abilities," Louise recited. Dean raised his eyebrows.

"Dude, did you just Dumbledore him?"

"What? It fits! Strange power that makes them seem evil but they choose to use it for good? Sammy here's our very own Harry Potter!"

Sam shook his head but he was also laughing.

"Then that makes you Hermione," he said.

"What? Why am I a bookworm?"

"Because you're the girl in the trio. And otherwise, Dean would be Hermione."

Louise snorted.

"Yeah, that's not happening any time soon. Fine, I'm Hermione. That makes Dean a ginger with a rat-turned-human sleeping in his bed."

"I will kill you," Dean threatened as Sam slumped in his seat, roaring with laughter. "And then I will hide you where nobody will ever find you."

"You do that," Louise grinned. "Anyway, I'm going for a walk. Peace out and all that."

She left the room, hissing like a snake at Sam as she did so. His laughter followed her all the way out of the house and she was still chuckling when she shut the door behind her and trudged out into the stacks of cars. She paused and frowned when her gut began to churn. Something was wrong…

She turned to go back to the house but before she had even taken a step, Louise felt the familiar nauseating presence of a demon nearby. Whirling around, she saw a stream of black smoke flying through the air towards her and, letting out a scream, she tried to run back to Bobby's house. But the demon was on her in an instant, pouring into her nose and mouth, stuffing itself down her throat. As she felt herself being shoved deep into her own mind, she panicked and tried to call out for help but she just couldn't!

" _Hi, Lou,"_ a low male voice said. _"Miss me?"_

There were only three demons that Louise knew well enough for a comment like that. And she was certain that she could rule out two of them.

' _Tom,'_ she snarled. _'Get the hell out of me!'_

Before Tom could reply, she heard Sam's voice call out, "Lou?"

"Over here!" Tom called. Louise's consciousness shuddered violently at the feeling of her mouth moving against her will and she now finally understood just how traumatic being possessed for months had been for Dean. And it had only been moments for her!

' _No, Sammy!'_ Louise cried when she saw Sam striding over.

" _Yes, Sammy!"_ Tom said gleefully.

"Lou, what's wrong? I heard you scream!" Sam said, reaching her.

"Nothing's wrong, Sammy," Tom said with a smile. He blinked and when Louise's eyes began to sting and Sam recoiled in horror, she knew that Tom's pitch black eyes must have been shining through. "Nothing at all."

"Dean!" Sam bellowed. He opened his mouth again – presumably to start an exorcism – but another plume of black smoke appeared and stuffed itself inside, disappearing down Sam's throat.

' _SAM!'_ Louise screamed. Through Tom's eyes, she watched as the evil black presence settled itself inside Sam and then he opened his eyes to reveal shining black. _'Is that – Meg?'_

" _Nah,"_ Tom said. _"She prefers Rachel now, after the last meat suit she stuffed herself inside. Y'know, so she doesn't have to remember the humiliation of being forced out of Meg Masters' body."_

' _Hey, I exorcised you too!'_

" _Yeah but the dude was already dead. Besides, I like the name Tom."_

"Sammy? Lou?" Louise heard Dean yell.

"C'mon, sis," Tom said to the demon inside Sam. "Let's blow this pop stand."

In a whirl of sulfurous darkness, the demons vanished


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go from bad to worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> In case y'all didn't know, I've been real busy. I've posted a Destiel oneshot called 'All's Forgiven', another Destiel oneshot called 'Broken' (spoilers for 11x10 though), a third installment to my Henry Winchester Chronicles and a Destiel fic based off some of LokiNeedsHugs1031's poetry, since it's beautiful and I can't stop reading it :D
> 
> So I shoved 'Born Under a Bad Sign' to a slot months earlier than in canon. Sue me. Also, I know that everyone probably thinks of the demon as Meg – and you can keep doing that if you want – but I renamed her because Meg Masters is alive and I didn't want any confusion.
> 
> (And no, I definitely didn't give the demon her new name based on my favourite version of her why would you think that ahahahaha)

**Chapter 26. Funhouse**

"What do you mean, they're gone?" Bobby said sharply.

"I mean, something happened!" Dean snapped. He pointed at the salvage yard outside. "Louise went out there for a walk and screamed. Sam went to find her and yelled. I went to find them and they were gone. And y'know what I found? Sulfur. Hardly any but I smelled it."

"But why would demons go after 'em?" Bobby said. "If they've been lyin' low for months then why would they show their faces now? And why would they go for Sam and Louise but leave ya here?"

"I dunno!" Dean turned and punched the wall. "I don't know, Bobby! But we've gotta find them! Before –"

Before his biggest fear came true and Sam and Louise were put through the same hell that he was!

-LW-

"Loving the new meat suit," Tom drawled, flexing Louise's hands. "What should we do first with our newfound freedom, sis?"

"I dunno," Rachel said thoughtfully. She tucked a lock of Sam's shaggy hair behind his ear. "We could always go on a bit of a killing spree?"

' _No!'_ Louise yelled. She was ignored.

"You heard Father," Tom said. "We have to keep a low profile. Killing sprees will draw attention to us."

Rachel pouted. Louise shuddered and tried to smash through the wall in her mind again but accomplished nothing except another resounding defeat.

"But…" Louise felt her mouth being pulled into a wide grin. "That's not to say that we can't have a little bit of a celebration. I'm thinking something low-key. Maybe a hunter or two?"

Rachel's eyes lit up, which looked absolutely terrifying on Sam.

"Yes!" she squealed. "Nobody cares about those boring old idiots anyway. And if we're caught…well, the Winchesters won't be so popular anymore, will they?"

' _Don't do this!'_ Louise pleaded. _'Just leave us alone!'_

Tom snickered.

"I think Lou's going a bit insane," he said gleefully. Rachel laughed.

"Oh, yeah. Poor Sammy's hysterical in here. 'Get out of me!' 'Leave us alone!' 'Please, Rachel, please!' Man, it's enough to make anyone sick."

Louise felt a surge of anger at the torment that Rachel was putting her little brother through and she hurled herself at the wall with a loud bellow. To her surprise, she managed to crack it slightly and she stumbled, suddenly in control of her own body. But Tom had only been taken by surprise for a moment and it was easy enough for him to shove her back into her mind and regain control.

"Okay, let's keep the sibling torment out of it," he told Rachel, who was watching him with raised eyebrows. "Apparently, they really don't like it."

"Fine," Rachel sighed. "Let's go have some fun!"

They vanished, leaving behind faint traces of sulfur.

-LW-

"You got anything, Bobby?" Dean said desperately.

"Hold yer horses, boy!" Bobby snapped, slamming one of his phones back down on the hook. "It's only been one day!"

"Yeah and who knows what those evil sons of bitches are putting Sammy and Lou through?"

"I can't pull miracles outta my ass, Dean! Ya wanna find them so bad, ya get out there and look instead of hangin' around and bitchin'!"

Dean paused. Wait. A miracle! He looked up and prayed that this worked.

"Cas!" he called. "You there? We kinda need a bit of help so if you could pop on down…yeah, that'd be great!"

There was no reply. Dean bit back a scathing remark, ignored Bobby's look and tried again.

"C'mon, man! Sammy and Lou are in trouble! Like, demon trouble! Can't you drag your feathery ass away for five minutes and help?"

When there was no reply again, Dean started to mutter under his breath. A familiar fluttering noise suddenly sounded and Dean turned, ready to chew Castiel out for taking so long to show up, but his shirt was grabbed in a vicious grip and he was shoved up against a wall.

"Your nerve astounds me, Dean Winchester," Castiel hissed, blue eyes furious. Dean swallowed and shifted nervously as best as he could in Castiel's vice grip. "I am not your servant, to be summoned whenever you require assistance and then to be the subject of your ire when I do not immediately appear."

Dean made an odd noise and Castiel slammed him against the wall again. Bobby was watching nearby, looking unsure of whether to risk a smiting and intervene or stay out of it.

"Fine. Sorry," Dean grunted. He didn't want to apologise to this dick but Sam and Louise were in danger, so he swallowed his pride. "My brother and sister were snatched by demons. Could you possibly deign to help us find them?"

Castiel's eyes narrowed. After a moment, he released Dean and stepped back.

"Louise is my charge," he said. "And my…friend." He paused and frowned. "Yes. Friend. I will help you find her and Sam."

"What'll your superiors say?" Dean couldn't help but jab. Castiel glared at him.

"My orders are to protect the three of you," he said. "They won't argue. Do you want to find Sam and Louise or not?"

"Hell, yeah," Dean said immediately. "C'mon." He headed for the door but paused and looked around at Bobby. "Bobby –"

"Go," Bobby said. "I'll tell ya if I get anything."

"Thanks, Bobby," Dean said, satisfied. "C'mon, Cas."

He led Castiel outside to the Impala, which the angel stared at curiously.

"I can fly us wherever we need to go," he said. Dean pointed at him with the car keys.

"You also have a nasty habit of flapping off whenever. And I ain't getting my ass stuck out halfway across the country."

Castiel gave him a look that was difficult to decipher. It could have been a 'you don't trust me and I'm hurt' look or it could have been an 'are you for fucking real' look. Dean was convinced that it was the latter.

"Get in."

-LW-

"That was fun," a very satisfied Tom said as he and Rachel strode on out of Steve Wandell's house, their clothes covered in blood and Wandell choking to death on his own blood. "Very stress relieving. Just what one needs after clawing their way out of Hell."

He poked Louise, who tried to ignore him. She had screamed and bellowed and raged and cried when Tom and Rachel had broken into the house, chased the hunter in a game of cat and mouse and slit his throat casually at the end and now, still trapped in her own head, she felt like she was going to have a mental breakdown. Her only option had been to retreat deep into her mind and try and ignore the foul presence in her body, lest she crack completely.

"I know where we should go next!" Rachel said, her eyes gleaming. "Remember Meg Masters? My old meat suit? Her family's alive and happy. You think we should teach her a lesson in what happens when you defy a demon?"

' _NO! LEAVE MEG ALONE!'_ Louise shrieked. She felt her mouth twist into a cruel smile.

"I don't think Louise likes the sound of that," Tom chuckled. "Let's do it."

The demons disappeared in their nauseating way. Louise, curling up into a tight ball in her mind, wondered if this was how Dean had felt while possessed by Azazel. And now she understood why he never wanted to talk about it. How could one describe the feeling of being trapped in their own mind while their body slaughtered and tortured and did horrific deeds?

"Louise!" Meg's chimed happily. Louise whimpered and curled up even tighter, not wanting to watch what happened next.

' _Please, someone help, oh God, please, help, help, HELP, GET ME OUT OF HERE, EXORCISE ME, HELP I NEED HELP HELP HELP HELP –'_

" _Just SHUT UP!"_ Tom snapped. Louise felt a sharp, stabbing pain and she covered her face with her hands, still rolled into a ball, and began to cry. She needed help! Why wouldn't anyone help her? Why could no one see that she was possessed?

"I'd love a drink, Meg," Louise felt herself say smoothly. When Meg went to go and get drinks, Tom looked at Rachel and smirked. He quickly schooled Louise's features when the sound of footsteps running downstairs sounded and a teenage girl with long blonde hair in a ponytail emerged. She froze and stared at Rachel and Tom curiously.

"Meg!" she hollered. Meg returned from the kitchen, three bottles of beer in her arms. "Who are they?"

"Sam and Louise," Meg replied, ruffing the girl's hair with her free hand and smiling fondly. "Remember I told you about them?"

"Oh, yeah!" the girl said as Meg handed Tom and Rachel a beer each. "They're the ones who helped save you from that cult!" She turned to Tom and Rachel. "Well, that's what I'm supposed to say when others are around. But Meg told me that it was really demons and that you managed to save her. Thank you so much!"

"It was nothing," Rachel said, eyeing Meg in a predatory way. "That's our job."

"This is my sister, Riley," Meg said. "She hasn't left me alone for months. And I had to tell her about – about demons. I couldn't let her get caught unawares."

"Can I have one of those?" Riley said.

"No."

"But –"

"You're seventeen, Riley. I'm not getting my ass kicked for letting you drink underage."

Tom snickered and raised the beer to his lips.

"How've you been holding up?" he said. "After…y'know. The demons."

Meg sighed.

"Mom and Dad forced me into counselling," she said. "Which actually helps a lot. I didn't tell them anything about demons but I did say that the cult…made me do things that I didn't want to do. It's been a huge weight off my shoulders to talk about it."

"That's good," Tom said with a smile.

" _I think I'm gonna be sick,"_ he gagged to Louise. Louise didn't reply. _"Oh, c'mon! Why are you being so boring?"_

' _Just leave me alone!'_ Louise sniffled. Tom snorted.

The sound of the door opening suddenly attracted their attention.

"Meg! Riley!" a man said. "We're home!"

A woman with greying blonde hair and a brunet man entered the living room, where they peered curiously at Tom and Rachel.

"This is Sam and Louise," Meg said. "They and their brother Dean helped me with – with the cult."

Her parents' eyes lit up in understanding and Meg's mother beamed widely at Tom and Rachel.

"We've wanted to meet you for months, to thank you properly!" she said, hurrying over and giving Tom a hug. Tom forced himself to reciprocate rather than stiffen or snap her neck. "You have no idea how worried we were when Meg disappeared for a year!"

"Our dad was missing for months," Rachel said as Mrs Masters hugged her. "We were looking for him. Hell, that's how we even found Meg in the first place."

Mr Masters then began to ramble on about something – Tom honestly was not paying attention. Instead, he shot a sideways look at Rachel, who nodded as the corners of her mouth upturned.

"I just wish that I could've laid my hands on those monsters," Mr Masters was saying. "I'd teach them to mess with my daughter!"

"Well," Rachel said. Her odd tone and closed eyes immediately attracted everyone's attention. "Be careful what you wish for."

When she opened Sam's eyes, they were pitch black. Mr and Mrs Masters were frozen in shock but Meg immediately screamed and backed away, pulling Riley with her.

"Remember me, Meg?" Rachel grinned, standing up. Tom followed suit, Louise's eyes also le demon black. "We were bunk buddies for a whole year! Don't you miss those fun times?"

"Y-You – get away from me!" Meg shrieked.

"Meg never told you, did she?" Tom grinned darkly at Mr and Mrs Masters. "It was never a cult. She was possessed by a demon for a year. Until little Louise here just _had_ to exorcise her. And me. That really hurt, by the way. Nothing like being ripped out of every cell in your meat suit's body and hurled downstairs into hellfire."

' _LEAVE THEM ALONE!'_ Louise yelled.

" _Oh, now she's awake! Wanna have some fun, Lou?"_

"But now we're back," Rachel said. "Did you really think that you could escape, Meg? You had to know that we'd be back. And now? We want revenge."

She pulled a knife out of the waistband of Sam's jeans. With a flick of her hand, a petrified Mrs Masters was sprawled and pinned on the couch and Rachel straddled her, caressing the knife lovingly.

"Leave them alone!" Meg cried. She tried to lunge at Rachel but Tom waved his hand, sending her flying into the wall. He did the same to Riley, who was screaming at the top of her lungs as she slammed into the opposite wall.

"We'll save the best for last, shall we?" Tom winked, his eyes still black. He turned back just in time to see Rachel wrench Mrs Masters' head back and slash her throat violently. Mrs Masters began to choke and gurgle, blood pouring out of her mouth and throat. Meg and Riley were still screaming and Mr Masters tried to escape to the next room but Rachel slid off Mrs Masters, whirled around and telekinetically slammed him into the floor.

"You want this one, Tom?" Rachel grinned. Tom smirked in reply, accepted her bloody knife and approached Mr Masters. He ripped away the man's shirt and began to trail the knife down his chest, leaving scarlet trails that began to ooze blood. Mr Masters bellowed in pain.

"Please! Stop!" Riley sobbed. Tom tilted his head.

"I could," he said. "But Louise here hurt my sister. And nobody dicks with my family but me. So if this will make Rachel here feel better then…well, who am I to deny my sister anything?"

He reversed his grip on the knife, raised it and plunged it into Mr Masters' chest. Mr Masters let out one last strangled cry before going limp, his eyes open but unseeing. Riley was sobbing hysterically, trying to pull herself away from the wall.

"Now, how about we see just how much it hurts when someone hurts your sister?" Tom grinned, standing up. He approached Riley but froze when he felt a pure, lightning-like presence appear in the room.

"Back away from the girl!" Dean's voice demanded. "And get the hell out of my sister!"

Tom slowly turned, making sure that his eyes were still black. Next to Dean was a man with messy black hair and a beige trench coat – Jimmy Novak, he realised after sifting through Louise's memories quickly – but inside Jimmy was a glowing, blinding presence. Tom had never seen a creature like this before but he knew what it was.

"Hi, Cas!" he chirped. "Love what we've done with the place?"

Castiel's vessel's face was blank but Tom could sense the fury pulsing out from him.

"Leave Sam and Louise, filthy demons," he ordered, taking a step towards Tom and Rachel.

"Or what? You'll kill us?" Rachel grinned. "But then you'd hurt your precious Winchesters."

She and Tom exchanged looks, wondering whether it would be worth it to stick around or to bid a tactical retreat. Their decision was made for them when Castiel took another step towards them.

"Leave," he growled. His silvery blade slipped into his hand. Deciding that retreat was the best option, Tom and Rachel smirked and disappeared.

"Dammit!" Dean turned and kicked one of the sofas. "They got away, Cas!"

"I can see that," Castiel said, putting his angel blade away. "I will see if I can track them down. You stay here and assist these girls."

He disappeared with a fluttering sound. Dean turned to the hysterical Masters sisters, who were clutching each other and sobbing, and forced a smile onto his face.

"Angels, huh?" he said. Meg and her sister just stared at him. "You did good, calling me while they were distracted. Alright, Meg and –?"

"Riley," the other girl said in a thick voice, wiping her eyes.

"Right. Riley. Well, you two have anyone to stay with?"

"Our aunt and uncle," Meg said blankly, her eyes fixed on her parents' corpses. "They live in Des Moines. Iowa. They should take us in. I'd take care of Riley myself but I can't afford a place and food and school for her."

"Okay. How about you give 'em a call?"

Meg nodded and pulled out her phone.

"C'mon, Riles," she said gently, steering Riley out of the living room. Dean exhaled loudly and grimaced at the bodies of Meg and Riley's parents. They didn't deserve it, dammit! A sudden loud flapping noise made him turn around.

"Dean," Castiel greeted. "I found no trace of the demons. They must have transported themselves to many different places in succession until I lost track of them."

"Dammit!" Dean's fists clenched. They were back to square one and now he'd probably never save his brother and sister! "Why'd you have to stand there and talk to 'em, Cas? You should've – I dunno – stuck 'em to the wall and let me exorcise them!"

Castiel's face visibly darkened.

"Do not _ever_ talk to me like that again, Dean," he spat. "I chose to help you when I could have returned to Heaven and decided not to interfere unless I was explicitly ordered otherwise. I will _not_ be treated like another tool, to be discarded when you have no use for me."

Dean blinked. And blinked again.

"Fine," he said with grudging respect. Anybody who could stand up to him when he was ranting and pissed was alright in his book. "Sorry, Cas. I just – those frigging demons! They're putting Sammy and Lou through hell! I've been there and I don't want them going through what I went through!"

Castiel's face softened and he stepped up to Dean and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I understand," he said. "If my brothers and sisters were in danger then I would spare no effort in finding them and saving them if they were incapable of saving themselves. But you must understand, Dean. I am doing my very best to help save Sam and Louise."

Dean nodded. He then went rigid when Castiel gave him a stiff, loose hug.

"Uh…what the hell are you doing?"

"One thing I learned from Louise is that hugs are given to comfort people." Castiel released him and stepped back. "I thought that you might be in need of some comfort."

"Right. Uh, never do that again." But Dean gave Castiel a weak grin to show that his effort was appreciated and a warm feeling of affection spread through him. Dammit, the angel had frigging grown on him!

"What are you gonna do now?" Meg was back with Riley, whose eyes were closed.

"Get Sammy and Lou back," Dean said immediately. "You reckon you two can hold off on that lift till those sons of bitches are roasting in Hell again? I mean, Cas could take ya like he brought me here but there'd be too many questions."

"We'll come, then," Meg said firmly. Her eyes were puffy and red but that did nothing to lessen the intimidating glare she had on her face. "That bitch has taken everything from me. She took a year of my life, she took one of my close friends and her brother and now she's taken my parents. I want in."

"Not happening," Dean rebutted. "Neither of you know the first thing about hunting. Cas and I don't need any distractions and we don't want you two getting yourselves killed."

"But –"

"Please, Meg," Riley whispered, still keeping her eyes closed. "I don't want to lose you too."

Meg deflated, her face softening immediately.

"Okay, Riles." She looked up at Dean and her face hardened. "Send those bitches back to Hell for me."

"You got it," Dean promised. "Once we're gone, call the cops. Spin some story – just leave us out of it." He turned to Castiel. "You ready for take-off, captain?"

"I don't understand that reference," Castiel frowned. Dean rolled his eyes.

"Never mind. Let's just go. I miss my Baby."

This time, instead of touching two fingers to his forehead, Castiel gripped Dean by the arm and they took off.


	27. Collide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean and Cas have a sort-of moment. Cas is oblivious, Jo gets a badass moment and Tom and Rachel get too cocky for their own good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I'm pissed that the show barely covered any after-effects of possession or Hell – I mean, Sam had a demon in him for a week and Dean seemed to magically get over Hell after a season! That's why I persisted with Dean and his flashbacks and that's why Sam and Louise aren't magically recovering.

**Chapter 27. Collide**

"I cannot believe how stress-relieving that was!" Rachel said happily when they finally managed to shake the angel off their tails. "Sure, the girls got away but hey, there's still a lifetime of psychological trauma!"

"It's at times like this that I remember why I don't hate you as much as I hate everyone else," Tom said fondly.

"Aww, you flatter me. Hate ya less too, bro. Who do you want to target next?"

"Hmm." Tom closed his eyes, sifting through Louise's memories. "Oooh. Seems that they've got some little friends who run a bar in Nebraska. How about we pay them a visit?"

Rachel grinned widely.

"Works for me. And that angel won't be able to track us?"

"Nope. I told ya, getting those cloaking marks when I found him in Lou's memories was the best idea. There's no way he can find us with his powers. Although I do wonder at the strings that dear Lou pulled to land herself a guardian angel…"

"Who cares? So long as he doesn't bother us, he's none of our concern. Let's go! I'm itching for more blood!"

-LW-

"So, any bright ideas on how to find them?" Dean said as they sped out of Wichita, where Baby had been left when he'd gotten Meg's distress call.

"I don't understand how I can't locate them," Castiel frowned, his head tilted. "They are just two common demons and Sam and Louise don't have any marks to cloak themselves from angels. Unless…"

"Unless what?"

"Unless the demons know about me. Sam and Louise both have memories of me, so it would be easy to find out about me and construct rudimentary cloaking sigils."

"So you can't find them."

"Not unless we encounter them."

"Well, that's just great."

"You must have some idea of how to find them, Dean. You have only known me for a few months but I'm sure that you would have had to try and locate Sam and Louise before."

"Actually…yeah. I think I've got an idea. Why the hell didn't I think of it before? You're a genius, Cas!"

"I am not a genius, Dean. Genius is a human term that seems unfair to apply to me as I am an angel and naturally excel at everything."

"…Whatever."

-LW-

Dean pulled over at the next motel and got out of the car. Castiel followed, unable to understand why they were stopping here. Was Dean resting for the night? What happened to his determination to find Sam and Louise? Castiel was surprised to find that this was a determination that he shared. In the month and a half since he had met Louise Winchester, Castiel found that he had developed a fondness for her and considered her a close friend, a luxury that he had not had for as long as he could remember.

He also rather liked Sam, once he realised that the youngest Winchester was merely burdened with an unwanted taint and not actively seeking to corrupt himself as his superiors had feared. And Dean…Dean was the harshest and brusquest out of the trio of siblings (because, Castiel had realised, Louise was truly their sister, even if she was biologically their cousin) but now that Sam and Louise were truly in danger – a danger that struck Dean personally, due to his previous demonic possession – Dean's more hidden side shone through. Castiel liked to think that he had seen the real Dean during this ordeal: a caring, determined man who possessed unrivalled love for his family and who would stop at nothing to save them.

Castiel found this one of Dean Winchester's most attractive qualities. After all, anybody who cared that much for family couldn't possibly be bad, could they? They would have to care for them, guide them, sacrifice for them and love them very deeply and one of Castiel's favourite qualities about humankind was the unfathomable love that they possessed for one another. Despite the camaraderie and siblinghood in Heaven, Castiel felt that he would be hard-pressed to find such deep and unparalleled love amongst his angel brethren and, to his shock, he realised that this love was something that he desired very much. Was this why he looked forward to returning to the Winchesters, despite his orders? Was this why he allowed Louise to teach him and introduce him to humanity?

"Evening, sweetheart," Dean said, snapping Castiel out of his near-treasonous thoughts. "Mind if I use your computer?"

The twenty three year old woman with bright red hair – Chelsea Dawning, Castiel found after a moment of prodding – gave Dean a blank look. Castiel could sense the waves of boredom rolling off her.

"Knock yourself out," she said. She slid out of her seat to let Dean access the computer and Castiel moved to Dean's side to observe Dean's actions. He quickly became aware of somebody watching him and, looking around, he saw that Chelsea's eyes were on him.

"Hey," she said with a smile – a stark contrast to her earlier attitude.

"Hello," Castiel replied, understanding that this was the correct human greeting custom. It seemed to have worked because Chelsea's smile widened.

"Name's Chelsea. You?"

"Castiel." Castiel saw no reason to lie. She was just a harmless young woman – if she had been anything otherwise, he would have sensed. As it was, he could hear her heart beating slightly faster than normal and her levels of oestrogen were rising. He tried not to frown. What was wrong with her body?

"So, what brings you to a dump like this?"

Castiel was about to say that two of his friends had been possessed and that he and Dean were trying to find them and exorcise them but, at the last minute, he remembered that most people did not know about the supernatural.

"Hi," Dean said into his phone, accidentally cutting into their conversation. "Uh, sorry to bother you but, uh, my son and daughter snuck out last night to, uh, go to a Justin Timberlake concert."

Castiel blinked. Why was Dean telling such a blatant lie? Maybe he should also lie to Chelsea.

"What Dean said," he eventually said.

"Oh," Chelsea blinked. "So are you two, like – y'know –"

She gestured wildly between them. Castiel cocked his head. What was she doing?

"Are we what?"

Chelsea's eyes flicked around and she leaned in.

"Y'know. Together. Partners. Lovers."

Castiel immediately understood what she was saying.

"No. Dean is simply a friend of mine. I am…assisting him in locating his runaway…son and daughter."

"Oh." The gleam from before was back in Chelsea's eyes and she leaned in even closer, so that she was very close to Castiel's face. "So you're single?"

"I have no romantic attachments, if that's what you are saying."

"Great. How about you spend the night? I could show you a _great_ time."

The offer sounded appealing. Would Chelsea school him in more of humanity as Louise had been doing? But for some reason, the thought of receiving lessons from anyone other than Louise, Sam or Dean did not interest Castiel.

"That's a kind offer," he said. "But no thank you."

He didn't understand why Chelsea suddenly looked so hurt, or why her tear ducts began to produce an abundance of tears.

"Fine," she spat. "Whatever."

Before Castiel could ask why she was so upset, Dean stood up and grabbed his arm.

"Broken Bow, Nebraska," he said to Castiel. "Thanks, miss. We appreciate it. C'mon, Cas."

Once they were in the car, Dean began to laugh at Castiel.

"What's so funny, Dean?" Castiel said. "I hurt that poor woman's feelings. She simply wanted to school me in more of humanity but I did not feel comfortable receiving lessons from anyone but you, Louise and Sam."

"'School you in humanity'," Dean chortled, wiping his eyes. "Is that what they're calling it these days?"

Castiel didn't understand. Why did Dean treat humanity lessons as a euphemism for something?

"I don't understand, Dean."

"She was propositioning you, man! Hitting on you!"

"What?"

Dean sighed.

"She was asking if you wanted to have a one-night stand with her."

Castiel blinked.

"Y'know…a night of sex with no strings attached."

"Oh." Now everything made sense to Castiel. The rising levels of oestrogen were because Chelsea was lusting after him! But even so, he was still totally uninterested in the thought of having sex with anybody. "Why did she not just ask if I wanted to have sex with her?"

"Because that's not how you do things, Cas. Man, you've got a lot to learn." He punched Castiel on the arm and Castiel smiled; Louise also did that and it seemed to be a gesture of affection among humans. "Luckily, Professor Dean is here to sub in!"

"I don't understand that reference."

"…Never mind, Cas."

-LW-

"How've you two been?" Ellen said warmly, bending down to get two glasses out.

"Pretty good," Tom grinned. "What about you?"

Ellen gestured around the bar.

"Business is booming," she said sardonically. "We were just closing when you stopped by."

"Thanks for letting us stay," Rachel said.

"Mom!" Jo hollered when Ellen was about to reply. "Phone for you!"

"'Scuse me for a moment." Ellen went to take the phone from Jo, who flashed a quick smile at Tom and Rachel.

"I'm gonna go out the back," she said. "Gotta make sure everything's in order for tomorrow."

"Take your time," Rachel waved. Sam's sleeve slipped down and Jo's eyes immediately locked onto the binding sigil burned into his arm.

"Ouch," she winced. "That looks nasty."

"Burned myself," Rachel chuckled. "Damn stoves, right?"

Jo nodded and bustled out to the back. Ellen returned a moment later and began to make their beers without a word.

"You okay, Ellen?" Tom said.

"What? Yeah," Ellen said, shaking her head. "Sorry. Bit of bad news about the bar. But we'll be fine."

She turned away to pour their beers. Tom and Rachel exchanged sceptical looks but then Ellen was returning with their beers, so they grinned at her.

"Cheers, Ellen," Rachel said. They raised their tankards of beer and Tom only had a split second to enjoy the taste of beer before it began to feel like he'd swallowed acid. Yelling in pain, he spat his drink out and rounded on Ellen, his black eyes shining through.

"Thought so," she said in a hard voice. Rachel, her eyes black as well, growled. "Get the hell outta Sam and Louise, you black-eyed freaks!"

"Hmm," Rachel said mock-thoughtfully. "No. Sam's very cosy, y'know. I like this meat suit."

A clattering noise made the demons whip around and their attention was drawn to Jo, who froze in the doorway of the back room. Tom and Rachel grinned evilly and began to advance on Jo.

"Leave my daughter alone!" Ellen snarled. Rachel flicked a lazy hand to send Ellen flying across the bar and she and Tom stalked towards Jo, who backed away into the room with wide eyes.

"Leave me alone!" the blonde snapped. Tom and Rachel just laughed and continued to back Jo into the room. Just as Jo had been backed into the wall –

"What the hell?" Tom cried when he smashed into an invisible wall. A bad feeling in his gut, he looked down and let out a howl. "A Devil's Trap! Seriously?"

"Take that!" Jo grinned, pulling a marker out of her pocket. "That phone call I got? It was Dean. He tracked your phone here and told us that you two were possessed."

"Nice work, Jo." Tom and Rachel whirled around to see Dean in the doorway with a hard look on his face, Castiel by his side and Ellen behind them. He stepped inside, snarling at Tom and Rachel. "This ends now. Get your ugly asses out of my brother and sister right now."

"Oh, yeah? Make us," Rachel challenged. Tom smirked, thinking of the binding sigil on Louise's forearm. Dean raised an eyebrow, pulled out John's journal and began to read off an exorcism.

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus…"


	28. The Exorcist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam and Louise finally realise just how traumatic it was for Dean to host Azazel for months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Just to be clear: I am an avid Destiel shipper. I am NOT shoving Dean and Castiel's relationship aside in favour of Louise and Castiel but these circumstances are different. Castiel has not raised Dean from Perdition and he has no orders pertaining to Dean apart from 'keep him alive' and his orders are focused on Louise, hence why I'm focusing on the interaction between them. But because I do love Destiel, I'm trying to build up their relationship and that's what those scenes between them last chapter were.

**Chapter 28. The Exorcist**

What was going on? Who was chanting that Latin? Dean! Was it Dean? Had he come to save them?

' _Dean?'_ Louise whispered tiredly. Tom sniggered, his voice echoing around her head.

" _Wakey, wakey, Lou!"_ he sang. _"Deano's trying to exorcise me. But he doesn't know that there's a binding sigil on your arm. I'm not going anywhere!"_

Louise couldn't even cry. She was far too mentally drained from Tom setting up shop inside her to even string a sentence together. To her horror, she found that Tom was right; as Dean got further into the exorcism, Tom started to twitch in pain but, to Louise's horror, the demon didn't feel dislodged in the least. Once the exorcism was done, Tom and Rachel just threw back their hosts' heads and laughed.

"It'll take more than that to get rid of us, baby," Rachel winked.

"Why didn't it work?" Jo said. "Did you read it right?"

"Course I did!" Dean snapped. "Why won't these sons of bitches get out of my brother and sister?"

"I believe that is your answer." Castiel pointed at Sam's forearm, where his binding sigil was exposed. "It's a binding link – that's what is keeping the demons locked inside Sam and Louise."

"Give the angel a cookie!" Tom said mockingly. Ellen and Jo reacted, clearly not knowing that Castiel was an angel.

"Wanna see a new trick we learned?" Rachel said before starting to chant in Latin.

" _Ready for some real fun?"_ Tom said gleefully.

' _Just stop…'_ Louise murmured.

With a loud crack, the floor split and the Devil's Trap was broken. Tom sent Jo and Ellen flying, while Rachel tackled Dean to the floor and began to punch the living daylights out of him. Tom turned to Jo, grinning widely.

"Hey, Joanna Beth," he cackled. "Wanna have some fun?"

' _Stop! Leave her!'_ Louise begged as Tom tangled his fingers in Jo's blonde hair and pulled, eliciting a shout of pain from her. But then, to Louise's relief and Tom's annoyance, a pair of strong arms encircled Tom and pulled him away from Jo.

"Let go of me, angel!" Tom spat, his eyes black again.

"No," Castiel said solemnly. He laid a palm on the binding sigil and, after a moment, it sizzled and blackened. Tom howled in pain and when Ellen began to loudly recite an exorcism, the demon clearly decided not to take his chances. Louise's head snapped back and she let out a hoarse scream as billowing black smoke streamed out of her mouth, loosening her body and granting her control over her limbs. Once the demon was gone, Louise sagged. Castiel's tight grip was the only thing keeping her off the ground.

"Are you okay, Louise?" Castiel said. Louise blinked rapidly, her whole body trembling, and she raised a shaky hand and touched her face.

"Y-Yeah," she said dazedly. "I'm fine."

She wasn't. She was dirty, unclean, as though she had been forced through a massive dirt patch that wouldn't come off her. But she could hear Dean and Rachel grappling and she knew that now wasn't the time to lose her head.

"Son of a bitch!" Dean shouted in the background. Louise winced.

"Go," she murmured. "Help Dean."

Dean had been possessed for months. She'd only had a demon in her for several days. She could handle this!

"Here, I got her." Louise felt Ellen take her gently from Castiel and she watched in exhaustion as Castiel turned and stormed towards Rachel, his trench coat billowing behind him.

"Get off of Dean," Castiel demanded, his voice infused with power. Rachel whipped around to look at him and then jumped off Dean. Quick as lightning, she had hauled Dean up and had an arm around his throat, her other arm keeping Dean's arms restrained. With Sam's large frame, this wasn't difficult.

"You hurt me, you hurt your human," Rachel threatened.

"Dammit!" Dean growled.

"I can simply heal Dean of any injuries he may acquire," Castiel said coolly, his silver blade gleaming ominously.

"True. But then I'll get away. And I'm still wearing Sam's meat."

Preoccupied with Castiel, she didn't notice Jo sneaking up behind her until the blonde thwacked her across the head with a bit of metal pipe. Startled, she whirled around and raised a hand to retaliate against Jo, who was now beginning an exorcism, but Castiel moved swiftly. In a moment, he had Rachel pinned against him while Jo continued to chant. But, deciding to follow in her brother's footsteps, Rachel quickly made her escape from Sam, who slumped against Castiel once the demon was gone.

"Sammy!" Dean rushed over and took Sam from Castiel, supporting his younger brother. "You okay?"

Sam just groaned in response. Louise felt Ellen hold her tighter.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" the older hunter asked. Louise just closed her eyes and nodded.

-LW-

" _No! Please!" Steve Wandell pleaded as Rachel dragged him across the floor._

" _Nighty night, Steve!" Tom sang, his knife glinting. With a slash, Wandell was gurgling and choking on blood and Louise tried desperately to regain control. Her bloodstained hands leapt out at her as she staggered, suddenly back in the driver's seat._

" _See, Lou?" Tom grinned. "You're a monster! You kill everyone you touch!"_

" _No!" Louise denied, shaking her head. "I didn't! It was you!"_

" _Stop trying to blame other people, Louise." Louise whirled around to see Castiel standing behind her, a grim look on his face. "You're a monster. I always knew you were. Why do you think that your kind was wiped out before? And now I must eliminate you."_

_His sword appeared back in his hand and he thrust it up through Louise's gut. Louise choked, pain lancing through her, and she clutched feebly at Castiel's trench coat, getting blood all over it as she bled out. Movement caught her eye and she saw Dean appear at Castiel's side, though his face was anything but positive._

" _Dean…help…" Louise whimpered, trying to stem her bleeding wound._

" _Why?" Dean said dispassionately. "You're a monster, Lou. You killed Wandell and Meg's parents. You're no sister of mine. Why the hell should I help you?"_

_Louise felt her limbs give out and she collapsed to the floor._

" _Dean…" she pleaded, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Dean!"_

" _Lou!" Dean mocked. "Lou!"_

"Lou!"

Louise screamed and shot upright. She was no longer in Wandell's house; instead, she was in one of the beds in their crappy motel room and Dean was looming over her, concern etched on his face.

"What's wrong? Talk to me!" Dean reached out for Louise but she flinched violently away.

"Don't touch me!" she shrieked. "I'm a monster!"

"What? Like hell!" Dean sat down and grabbed Louise's arms, pulling her towards him while she struggled and fought. "You're not a monster, Lou! Cut it out!"

The fight draining out of her, Louise gave up and slumped against Dean, allowing him to pull her into a tight hug as she howled and sobbed. Everything that she had done while possessed was swimming at the forefront of her mind, drowning and overwhelming her, and she clutched at Dean's shirt to try and anchor herself or else she was going to lose it.

"Shh…it's okay, Lou…he's gone…" Dean said, softly rocking her back and forth. He hadn't done that since he was thirteen and this more than anything helped to calm Louise down, reducing her hysterics to soft crying. Exhaustion began to pulse through her and she sagged against Dean, sniffling.

"Cas was right," she mumbled. "He should've iced me. I killed three people. Oh, God. I killed three people."

"Hey," Dean said sharply. "Not your fault, alright? It was that fucking demon, not you."

Louise sniffed.

"Okay, then. I killed loads of people when Azazel was in me. Does that make it my fault?"

"No," Louise whispered. "Couldn't help it. Azazel did it, not you."

"Tom did it, not you. Okay? You kept telling me that it was all Azazel's fault and I couldn't do anything about it and y'know what? I'm actually starting to believe it. So do me a favour and do the same and believe that it was that damn demon and not you."

Louise took a deep, shuddering breath. Dean was right. He'd had it far worse than her. What right did she have to complain? Finally opening her eyes, she looked around for Sam – surely she'd woken him up with her outburst – but he was nowhere to be found.

"Where's Sammy?" she murmured.

"Said he needed some air. If you're any indication, he's probably a total wreck. I'm gonna go find him, okay? Just try and get some sleep, Lou. I know the nightmares are a frigging pain but you need some sleep."

"Okay, Dean." Louise's voice was barely intelligible. "Go find Sammy."

Dean carefully laid her back down on the bed and then, to her surprise, bent down and kissed her forehead. She smiled sleepily and closed her eyes and she heard the room door open and close a moment later. As soon as Dean was gone, the flashbacks and images began to start up again and Louise whimpered and curled into a tight ball, clutching at her hair and trying not to burst into tears again.

" _Monster…eliminate…"_ Castiel's voice echoed in her head.

"No! Cas! Please!" she squeaked. A sudden rustling sound caught her attention and her eyes flew open. At the end of her bed was Castiel with a look of concern.

"You prayed to me," he said. "You sounded distressed. Are you okay, Louise?"

"Yes," Louise said quickly. She blinked and her hands suddenly seemed to be covered in blood. Yelping, she shoved them under the covers. "No! No, I'm not! I can't stop, Cas! They don't stop! I killed people! And Dean told me that it wasn't me and it was the demon but I still did it and I'm a monster and you should've just killed me when you –"

"Louise," Castiel interrupted. "Calm down. What happened was not your fault. You are not responsible for the actions of a demon."

Castiel sat down next to Louise's head.

"And I should not have killed you," he said. "You have taught me a lot and for that, I am grateful. I am glad that I was ordered to spare your life."

Louise let out a watery chuckle.

"Thanks, Cas." She swallowed. "I – you were in my nightmare. Saying that I should've been killed and that I was a monster and – and just like the rest of my kind." Her shoulders began to shake. "But I'm not! I'm not! I'm not like the other nephilim! I don't want to cause chaos and kill loads of people!"

"I know," Castiel said firmly. "You are different, Louise. That's why you are still alive. That's why I was ordered to ensure that you would not become like the other nephilim. It was just a nightmare, Louise."

"I know." Louise turned over, burying her face in the pillow. "God. You must think I'm a weak, over-emotional loser."

"You have been through a great ordeal, Louise. You are not weak in any way. Now, go to sleep. I know that you must sleep in order for your body to recover."

"Every time I try, I see Wandell and Meg's parents," Louise said, her voice muffled. She felt Castiel's hand touch her head and she stiffened.

"I'll stay here, Louise," he said. "I'll watch over you and Sam and ensure that you two and Dean are safe. That – that's what you do for friends, isn't it?"

Louise smiled and turned back over to face Cas.

"Yeah, it is. Thanks, Cas."


	29. Betrayal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam, Dean and Louise done messed up big time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Just for future reference: I'm using vessel pronouns to describe angels and demons. When Tom was in Louise, he was still a 'he' because that's how she saw him. But in other vessels, I'll be going by their vessel's gender. Just a heads up!

**Chapter 29. Betrayal**

"Ya guys ever hear of a hunter called Steve Wandell?" Bobby asked, entering the living room where Dean was channel surfing again, Sam was on his laptop and Louise was staring out the window blankly. "Just heard from a friend. He was found dead – murdered in his home."

Sam swallowed and Louise looked down guiltily. Sure, she had been possessed but it wasn't going to stop her from feeling horrible about it, especially since she had been able to remember practically everything she'd done while sharing her body with Tom!

"Ya wouldn't know anything about that, would ya?"

"Nope," Dean said. "Never heard of him."

"Good." Bobby cut off Sam and Louise's protests. "His buddies are out for blood and they'll get it if yer stupid enough to try and reason with 'em, possessed or not."

There was silence for a moment before Bobby handed out some metal charms that he claimed protected them from possession.

"These'll stop the demons from getting back up in ya," he said.

"That sounds dirty but thanks," Dean quipped.

"Ya be careful, now," Bobby said. Sam nodded and smiled at Bobby but the older man didn't return the smile.

-LW-

Castiel had decided. He was going to tell the Winchesters about his true orders: to gain their trust for Heaven. He knew that he was defying orders but something very deep down told him that this was the right thing to do and so he knew that he had to do it. Sam, Dean and Louise were his friends. And he could not keep this secret from them any longer.

"Is that all, Castiel?" Zachariah said when Castiel had finished his report.

"Yes," Castiel said. Zachariah frowned at him.

"What's wrong, Castiel?" ne said. "You look like you're keeping something from me."

"Nothing," Castiel said quickly. "I am not keeping anything. I have told you everything."

Zachariah leaned forward, nir lion head staring at Castiel intensely.

"Are you sure?" ne said. Castiel edged away slightly, more nervous than he'd been in a long time. "Are you…considering disobedience, Castiel?"

Castiel froze. Was he? Would he do the right thing? It would be disobedience and that was one of the worst things an angel could do!

"No!" Castiel said vehemently. Zachariah sighed and shook one of nir other heads.

"I think you need another lesson," ne said.

"No. I don't require another lesson." Whatever that was. But if it was connected with the small, irregular holes in his memory then Castiel didn't want to find out. "I live to serve."

"I'm sure you do," Zachariah said soothingly. There was a knock on nir door and another angel stepped through. Ne seemed familiar…almost as if Castiel had seen nem before…

"Zachariah," the new angel said.

"Ah. Naomi. I think Castiel here requires another…lesson. Just to make sure that his head's 'in it'."

Naomi turned and fixed Castiel with a piercing look. Castiel immediately knew that he did not want to find out what nir lessons entailed, so he did the only thing he could do.

He ran.

-LW-

"Cas is late," Louise frowned, flicking through a book in utter boredom. Usually, she'd have been with Cas for at least an hour by now but the angel hadn't even shown up. Louise tried not to worry; he _was_ an angel and he didn't need some human fussing over him. But he was a good friend and Louise couldn't help it. Suddenly, there was a rustling sound and a wide-eyed Castiel stood in the middle of the motel room.

"Cas!" Dean grinned. His smile fell at the look on Castiel's face. "What's up?"

"I don't have much time," Castiel said quickly, his eyes flicking to the door. "I – I disobeyed Heaven. I fled. They'll be after me."

"What? What the hell'd you do?" Louise said in alarm. What had Castiel gotten himself into?

"I have to tell you three something," Castiel said, still stiff as a post. "I…have not been entirely forthcoming. I told you that my orders were to protect you and to assist Louise with her powers. But there's more."

Louise frowned and leaned forward. What had Castiel been hiding from them?

"Michael…ne had a reason for sparing Louise," Castiel continued. His eyes continued to flick around nervously. "Hell is plotting. And there will come a time when Dean is needed as – as a vessel for Michael. Heaven and Hell are planning a fight between Michael and Lucifer and they require vessels – Dean and Sam, to be precise. Louise was to be left alive to placate Dean. To – to make it easier for me to gain your trust. Then when Heaven required your assistance, we would have it."

Louise was frozen, staring at Castiel with an open mouth. All this time…all these months…he'd just been using her? Pretending that he liked her, in order to gain Dean's trust so that Heaven could use her big brother as an angelic meat suit? All of the times she'd confided in him…all of the times she'd laughed and taught him about humanity and let him get close…and none of it was real?

"I understand that this is a lot to take in," Castiel said. "Heaven did not want me to tell you but I knew that I had to, so I disobeyed. They –"

"Was it even real?" Louise said hoarsely. "All that crap…all those times you said I was your friend…was it real?"

"Yes!" Castiel insisted. "I…grew to care. I should not have but I did. And I'm glad that I did because you and Dean and Sam are my closest friends. You –"

"No." Dean stood up, glaring daggers at Castiel. "You lied to us. You used us. And now you have the balls to tell us this and expect everything to be okay? Get out!"

"But Dean –"

"You heard him!" Louise was shaking with rage. "Get the hell out, Castiel! I – I _trusted_ you! _We_ trusted you! And you've been lying to us all this time!"

"Louise –"

" _Go_!"

Castiel looked at Sam but the younger Winchester just shook his head, not meeting Castiel's eyes. Castiel looked down and nodded.

"Just know that I truly do think of you three as my friends," he said. "That is not a lie."

And with that, he crossed over to the door and left, pulling it shut behind him. Louise buried her face in her hands, fighting the urge to cry. When had everything gone so fucking wrong?

"I can't believe it," Dean spat. "I thought he was our friend. We trusted him!"

"He said that he changed his mind," Sam pointed out, though he looked like a kicked puppy. "Maybe even angels can change. And what if we're the ones who changed him?"

"He had plenty of chances to tell us, Sam!" Dean said. "He's had two months to tell us that we're – that there's a plan to use us as angel condoms for some prize fight! And he kept it all to himself!"

"But –"

"Shut up!" Louise yelled, grabbing at her hair. "Just shut up! Now's not the time for arguing!"

Sam and Dean fell silent, glowering at each other. Louise suddenly stiffened when her senses lit up like fireworks and presences similar to Castiel began to appear. Angels! More than one! What did they want?

Louise's blood ran cold.

"Cas!" She jumped up and skidded over to the door, yanking it open. A bright light streamed into the room, along with a very high-pitched sound, and Sam and Dean cried out and fell to the ground, clutching their ears, as any breakable things in their room shattered. But Louise was largely unaffected, though she did instinctively cover her eyes, and when the light died down, she stared in horror. Because it wasn't Castiel slumped over outside anymore.

It was Jimmy.

-LW-

"Two months?" Jimmy said in alarm around his mouthful of burger. "Two months? Amelia and Claire – they'll be hysterical!"

Louise nodded, unable to look at Jimmy. On the one hand, she was thrilled that Jimmy was finally back and no longer trapped in his own skin with an angel. But on the other hand…Castiel was one of her best friends and now that he was gone, Louise realised that he really had changed for the better. And she'd just thrown him out without a second thought.

God, she was such an idiot!

"Hey, ya mind slowing down?" Dean said as Jimmy shovelled the last of his burger into his mouth and then reached for another. "I'm getting angina just watching you."

"I'm hungry," Jimmy said defensively. "I haven't eaten in months. Mmm, that's the stuff!"

Louise flinched. It was odd to hear his normal voice instead of the gravelly tones of Castiel that she'd grown accustomed to.

"What the hell happened?" Sam said. "What was with that light and noise?"

"Angels," Louise said. She licked her dry lips. "I'm sure they were angels. I – I think they ripped Cas out."

She squeezed her eyes shut. What the hell were the angels doing to Castiel?

"You remember anything about being possessed?" Sam said. "I mean, me and Louise…we remember pretty much everything from when those demons were in us."

"Bits and pieces. But I dunno if an angel's different from a demon. Having an angel in you…it's kinda like being chained to a comet."

Louise flinched again. Did it make her a horrible person that she still wanted Castiel back, even if Jimmy was being put through all of that?

"What happened?" she croaked. "Y'know, when Cas came to you and asked…well…"

Jimmy sighed.

"Things were…rough," he said. "Claire was having nightmares and Amelia…I think she was going a bit crazy after those vampires. She never believed in that stuff before, even though she said she believed in God. I don't know how she could claim to believe when she really didn't but…"

He shrugged.

"Then Castiel came when we were having dinner. Amelia and Claire…they couldn't hear him, so they just crawled under the table. But I could hear him. He said that he needed me for a special mission. To eradicate an enemy of God." He blinked. "Oh, hell. That was you?"

Louise nodded.

"Turns out Dean's special to the angels so he was ordered to kiss up, not kill," she muttered bitterly. "But keep going."

"I was thrilled. I mean, I was just a common salesman and an angel comes and says that he needs me for a higher purpose? I thought I finally had the chance to serve a higher power!"

"Jimmy, you idiot," Louise sighed. Jimmy grimaced.

"I know that now. I thought it'd be a temporary thing – let him in, get rid of this enemy and then come back to Amelia and Claire with some magical new knowledge about my purpose in life. But…Castiel must've gotten those new orders because next thing I know, I'm waking up here two months later with you standing over me."

Louise looked down.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy," she whispered. "I summoned him to try and help with my powers. I – I never meant for you to get caught up in this…"

"Don't blame yourself," Jimmy said, though he couldn't look her in the eye. Louise flinched for a third time and looked away. "You didn't know."

He shoved his empty wrappers away and sighed.

"I want to go home," he said. "I wanna see Amelia and Claire. They'll be worried sick."

"You can't," Sam said. Everybody stared at him.

"What do you mean, I can't?" Jimmy snapped. "I haven't seen my wife and daughter in two months. I want to go home and see them!"

"Jimmy, you were a vessel," Sam said. "Louise and I…we can remember bits and pieces about the demons that possessed us."

"But I don't remember anything!"

"They don't know that! They went after some random guy and the parents of a friend of ours for fun! Who's to say that they won't target your family even if you don't know anything? If we wanted to know about Cas then you can bet that the demons want to as well – I mean, he's the first angel to be down here in two thousand years! You'll be putting your family in danger!"

Jimmy looked sick.

"You guys know how to protect against demons," he said. "Teach me. I'm going home. I don't care what you say. I'm done with it all and I just want to go home."

"Jimmy –"

"Look, no offence but you really don't understand. I've been hurt so many times and dragged around like a puppet and I'm free! I've served my purpose! I just want to go home!"

"But –"

"Leave him be, Sam," Louise said tiredly, rubbing her eyes. "I'll come and stay in Pontiac for a bit. You two'll be fine without me."

"You sure, Lou?" Dean didn't look like he agreed with her proposition.

"I owe him that much, Dean. It's my fault he was even dragged into this anyway. It's the least I can do."

Dean's jaw set.

"Fine. C'mon. If you wanna make it to Pontiac by morning, we have to go now."

The drive to Pontiac was quiet, except for the music that Dean was blaring. He was staring straight ahead resolutely, his hands clenched around the steering wheel. Sam was tapping away on his laptop, not looking at anyone, while Louise was curled up in the backseat and Jimmy was staring out the window.

Louise couldn't bring herself to look at Jimmy. It was her fault that he was in this situation! If she hadn't been so stupid as to summon that damn angel…and now, to add icing to the cake, she wanted that damn angel back! The thought that Castiel might be in danger left a lead weight in her stomach and she couldn't help but replay that scene over and over again in her head. Why had she told him to get out? Why hadn't she been reasonable? People changed! Maybe angels did as well! But no, she'd had to be a total bitch and kick him out without hearing him out!

"There." Dean's voice snapped Louise out of her thoughts. "We're here."

Jimmy was out of the car faster than Louise could blink. Dean turned to look at Louise.

"You sure about this, Lou?" he said. Louise nodded.

"I have to," she croaked. It was the first time she'd spoken since leaving the motel. "I owe it to him."

She grabbed her duffle bag from the floor and slid out of the Impala. Giving Sam and Dean a quick smile, she waved and set off after Jimmy to his house, the sound of the Impala driving off reaching her ears after a moment. As soon as she reached the doorway of the house, she knew that something was wrong.

"Jimmy?" she called. The nauseating presence of demons was threatening to overwhelm her and she nearly hurled when she realised just how familiar they felt. "Jimmy! Answer me!"

In answer, something crashed. Louise hurtled through the house towards the sound and found, to her horror, that a black-eyed Amelia was pinning Jimmy to the wall by his throat. She turned and bared her teeth at Louise in a grin.

"Louise! So nice to see you again!" she said sweetly. Louise nearly gagged when she recognised the demon inside Amelia.

"Tom," she forced out. Waves of memories and flashbacks swamped her, made even worse by Tom's oily, dark soul, and she sagged against the door frame, trying not to throw up or pass out.

"And this must be Jimmy," Tom said, trailing a finger down Jimmy's cheek. "I've wanted to meet you for a long time, Jimmy – ever since I saw you in Louise's memories. I mean, an angel's vessel? I haven't had the pleasure of meeting one of them before…"

"'Melia!" Jimmy wheezed, trying to force his possessed wife's hands away from his throat. Louise started towards him but was suddenly hurled into a wall. Her head pounding and her vision swimming, she was met with a very unpleasant sight when she finally recovered: little Claire, grinning in a very evil way and with black eyes rather than her usual blue.

"Hi, Louise!" she chirped. "I'm so glad you came back to visit me!"

"Rachel," Louise snarled. Rachel grinned.

"She remembers!" She crossed over to Jimmy and smiled up at him. "Hi, Jimmy! I'm Rachel and this is my brother, Tom. We're gonna be asking you a few questions, okay?"

Louise gritted her teeth and began to concentrate on her telekinesis. Castiel had been training her for two months! She should be able to overcome a demon! Slowly but surely, she felt herself gaining more and more control over her invisible bonds. She glanced at Tom and Rachel, worried that they would notice, but they were too preoccupied with Jimmy.

"He's boring," Rachel complained. "I say we have some fun."

Tom grinned widely and held out her hand to summon a knife. Louise's eyes widened. She couldn't let anything happen to Jimmy! With one last colossal effort, she broke free of her bonds with a yell. Tom and Rachel whirled around in alarm.

"What the hell?" Tom snapped.

"You're not the only one with a few tricks up your sleeve," Louise growled. "Now get the hell away from Jimmy!"

"Make us," Rachel challenged. Louise raised her eyebrows and began to chant.

"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus –"

"Uh, uh!" Tom tutted. Reversing her grip on the knife she raised it and plunged it into Amelia's chest.

"NO!" Jimmy bellowed. "AMELIA!"

"Hey, that looks like fun!" Rachel said. Louise dived at her and tackled her to the ground, intent on saving Claire, but Rachel just pulled Louise's knife out of the waistband of her slacks and stabbed herself in the gut. Jimmy's pained yell nearly made Louise cry. She'd failed again! If she exorcised Amelia and Claire, they'd die!

"Well, this is a problem," Tom grinned, turning to face Jimmy. "You see, Louise can still exorcise us. But if she does? Wifey and little girl take a dirt nap for good."

Jimmy's face was chalk white and his breathing was laboured. When Rachel lashed out and kicked Louise off before straddling her, Louise didn't even fight. Why should she? Everyone around her kept getting hurt or killed! And now Jimmy's family were the ones suffering! Deep down, she knew that there was no hope for Amelia and Claire and that she should exorcise them anyway but she just couldn't bring herself to.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy," she murmured. "'S all my fault."

"Aww!" Rachel cupped Louise's face. "Don't cry, Lou! I hate it when you cry!"

"Are – are they gonna die?" Jimmy said, sounding like every word was a struggle. Louise closed her eyes so that she didn't have to see Jimmy's face and nodded. She heard him inhale sharply. "Then…do it. Please. I can't – don't let them suffer like – like me. And you. If those demons get away – they'll be trapped – they'll suffer for ages…"

Louise pursed her lips to hold back sobs. Taking a deep breath, she began to shakily recite the exorcism again. Tom and Rachel howled and when Louise got to the second verse of her exorcism, they finally decided that enough was enough. Amelia and Claire's heads were thrown back as the demon smoke escaped them and then the two females collapsed like broken puppets. Louise could hear Jimmy sobbing as he crawled over to his dead wife and daughter but she couldn't bring herself to look at him. Instead, she turned over, curled into a ball and let her own tears burst free, wondering why she failed at everything and broke anything she touched.


	30. Problems with Dead People

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jimmy finally loses it. And Naomi's a bitch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Chapter 30 already! And still in S2! :D
> 
> Thanks to tkgrl223 for your comment :)

**Chapter 30. Problems with Dead People**

"You okay?" Dean said as they sped out of Pontiac as fast as possible. Amelia and Claire's bodies wouldn't go unnoticed for long and as much as Jimmy wanted to stick around and bury them properly, the Winchesters had convinced him not to. For one, they wanted to avoid the authorities as much as possible and for another, more demons might catch wind of what had happened and come running to investigate. And that wouldn't be a good thing.

"Yeah," Louise said dully, staring out the window. She wasn't remotely okay but she wasn't going to tell the others that. What right did she have to burden them? She'd already fucked everything up by summoning Castiel! And now Jimmy's family was dead and she was caught between her friend, who really didn't deserve all the crap that had happened to him, and her best friend, who probably hated her now. And Castiel really was right to hate her if he came back; she'd kicked him out without a second thought! What sort of friend did that? And what was Heaven doing to him now?

-LW-

This couldn't be right. Sariel was certain of it. Time and time again, ne wondered how nir brother could allow this to happen. This had to be wrong!

"Ah, Sariel." Naomi put down nir drill and stepped away from the bound angel with a sweet smile. Sariel nearly winced when ne saw that the angel was Castiel, one of nir favourites from nir garrison. "What are you doing here?"

Naomi was all smiles and politeness, as was necessary when dealing with an archangel, but Sariel knew better. Ne could count on one ten-fingered celestial hand the number of angels that showed nem actual respect, especially after ne had worked millennia to regain it. Okay, so ne had completely messed up before! Ne had worked for thousands of years to redeem nemself and it still wasn't good enough for the other angels!

"Michael – Michael wanted me to inquire as to how your…lesson is going." The word made Sariel feel dirty. Because these weren't lessons – they were brainwashing!

"Nearly there." Naomi stroked nir drill almost lovingly. "Very soon, Castiel will be rid of these doubts. Though I do wonder why we allow nem to live rather than just kill nem now. It would be so much simpler –"

"Michael's orders," Sariel said, sharper than ne intended. "How – how long do you think it will take?"

"I'm not sure. Castiel is proving remarkably difficult to crack this time. This is what happens when we let angels form emotional attachments." Naomi sighed and shook nir head, tutting. "But don't worry. Tell Michael that Castiel is nearly ready. And you will have your little soldier back soon."

Sariel glanced at Castiel, who shot nir a pleading look. Gulping, ne looked away and fled like the coward ne knew ne was, praying that Castiel did not remember this betrayal when the younger angel broke.

-LW-

"Holy crap." Sam touched the black goo on the light switch. Louise wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Ectoplasm," she and Dean said at the same time.

"Ecto-what?" Jimmy said.

"Hey, I think I know what we're dealing with here!" Dean grinned. "The Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man!"

Louise rolled her eyes and Sam shot him a look.

"Dean, we've only seen this stuff, like, twice! You've gotta be a majorly pissed spirit to make it!"

"Oh, great," Jimmy said with a hysterical little laugh. "Pissed ghosts. Exactly what we need."

"You can go and wait in the car, y'know," Dean said.

"Dean, lay off him," Louise said, crossing her arms.

As they left the apartment, they were surprised to run into Jo, who was posing as an interested tenant, and the landlord. Louise was just wondering how they'd explain what they were doing there when –

"There you are, honey!" Jo trilled, grabbing Dean around the waist. "This is my boyfriend, Dean. And these are his buddies: Sam, Louise and Jimmy."

Louise nearly snickered. Jo must have been having a field day, posing as Dean's girlfriend!

"Good to meetcha," the landlord said amicably. Louise shot Jo a grateful look. "Quite a gal you've got here, Dean."

Dean slapped Jo's ass and Louise bit her lip to stop herself from bursting into hysterical laughter.

"Oh, yeah," he said. "She's a pistol."

"So, did you already check out that apartment for rent?" Jo said.

"Yep. Loved it. Great flow."

Louise caught the understanding in Jo's eyes.

"How'd you get in?" the landlord said.

"It was open, so we figured you wouldn't mind," Louise said.

"So, uh, when did the last tenant move out?" Jo said.

"About a month ago," the landlord replied. "Cut and run, too. There went my rent."

"Well, her loss, our gain!" Jo said. "'Cause if Dean-o loves it, it's good enough for me!"

"Oh, sweetie." Dean slapped her ass again. Louise bit her lip so hard that she tasted a bead of blood.

"We'll take it." Jo pulled out a wad of cash and gave it to the landlord. As they set off for the apartment, Louise shot Jo an amused look.

"You couldn't help it, could you?" she said.

"What?" Jo grinned. "You'd have done the same if Dean wasn't your brother!"

Louise shuddered.

"If he'd slapped my ass, I'd have slapped _him_. Brother or not."

Jo's grin just widened.

-LW-

"Does your mother even know you're here?" Dean said as they argued over the sofa.

"Told her I was going to Vegas," Jo shrugged.

"Yeah, like she's gonna buy that."

"I'm not an idiot. I got Ash to lay a credit card trail all the way to the casinos."

"Her mom's gonna be pissed," Louise muttered. "And I'm not getting involved."

Jimmy didn't answer.

"You okay, Jimmy?"

"My wife and daughter are dead," Jimmy snapped. "And I can't even go to their funerals. Do I look okay to you?"

"Look, I know where you're coming from," Louise said. "Mom and Aunt Mary…we couldn't give them a proper burial. We've also lost our dad and a couple of close friends. We're no strangers to loss, Jimmy. You just gotta put on a brave face and hope that the pain hurts less the next day."

Louise was surprised to find that being back on a case had reinvigorated her. Maybe this distraction was just what she needed. Jimmy, however, snorted and turned away.

"We're screwed," Dean announced. Louise looked around. "That was Ellen. I'm sure she knows that Jo's with us."

"Oh, relax!" Jo said cheerfully. "You'll be fine!"

-LW-

"This place was built in 1924," Jo reported, looking down at the papers spread out before her. "Originally a warehouse, converted into apartments a few months ago."

"So what was here before then?" Louise said. She glanced down at Jimmy again but he was still curled up on his side, not talking to anybody, so she just ruffled his hair. He didn't react.

"Nothing. Empty field."

"So someone died bloody here and now he's back and pissed?" Sam said. "Most likely scenario."

"Already checked. Zero violent deaths in the past eighty two years, apart from a janitor who slipped over. Dean, would you sit down?"

Dean scowled and sat down.

"So, have you checked everything?" he said. "Police reports, country death records –"

"Obituaries, mortuary reports and so on. I know what I'm doing."

After some more discussion, they decided to split up and investigate the building. Jo was pissed when Dean stuck with her rather than letting her go alone, so Louise said that she would work with Jimmy to try and make Jo feel a bit better.

"C'mon, Jimmy." Louise nudged him. "You can come help me or you can go sit in the car. You're not staying here alone with a killer ghost on the loose."

"Fine." Jimmy stood up and stretched. "I'll come. My luck, the ghost'll get me."

Louise slapped him on the arm.

"Don't think like that!"

Jimmy shot her a glare and looked away.

"Let's just go," he said.

Once the five of them had split up, with Jo and Dean pairing up and Sam going by himself, Louise handed Jimmy a spare knife and told him to stay behind her.

"Are you okay?" she said, gently tapping her EMF meter to warm it up.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Jimmy said darkly, his blue eyes flicking from side to side.

"Well…Amelia and Claire. That'd be rough on anyone."

"Don't you dare speak their names," Jimmy spat. Louise froze, staring at Jimmy with wide eyes. "It's your fault they're dead."

Louise felt a sinking feeling in her gut.

"I know," she said heavily. "I – I exorcised them when –"

"That's not what I'm talking about. Exorcising them was a _mercy_. But you just had to shoulder your way into our lives, didn't you? Amelia…she thought of you as a hero for saving Claire. And Claire just couldn't wait to see the great Louise Winchester again. When I said yes to Castiel…I made him promise that they'd be safe. And they weren't. He broke his promise! But that's to be expected. Y'know, big celestial being who looks down on us mortals and all."

Jimmy levelled Louise with such a scathing look that she felt physically sick.

"But you…you never once checked on them. Two months, Louise! Two months! And you never once paid them a visit or made sure that they were alright! Hell, you never left your number for them to contact you! And if you hadn't summoned Castiel…well, they'd be alive, wouldn't they? They wouldn't have been possessed by those demons – who clearly have a grudge against you – and they wouldn't have died!"

Louise stared at Jimmy with an open mouth but she didn't try to defend herself, not even from the summoning Castiel thing when he'd said earlier that he didn't blame her. Because it was true…so very true…

"I – I'm sorry," she croaked. "I just – I couldn't face Amelia and Claire. Not after – not after being the reason that you were gone." She examined her EMF meter, mostly to allow her dark hair to fall around her face so that Jimmy couldn't see how close she was to tears. "I knew they'd hate me. And I – I was selfish. I was so excited at the thought of finally being able to control my stupid powers that I just…stopped worrying after a while. That's why I never went and checked on them. I didn't want to have to face up to my own selfishness."

Jimmy snorted.

"Look at me, Louise," he said. Louise didn't want to but she did anyway, her amber eyes meeting his blue ones. "You want Castiel back. I know you do."

Louise reluctantly nodded.

"I hate myself for it," she rasped. "Because you don't deserve it. But he's also my friend and I feel like such a _bitch_ for wanting him back."

"I get it. You became close friends with him and you want him back. I don't remember much from having him in me but I do remember how fond he was of you and Dean and Sam. He thought you three were fascinating – hell, he even considered rebelling for you. And that was all I got from a fleeting second."

"He did rebel," Louise whispered, her heart breaking at the revelation of how Castiel felt about them. "And we kicked him out because of it."

"And I'm free because of it. Can you look me in the eye and honestly tell me that you want me back more than Castiel?"

Louise tried. She really did. She opened her mouth but meeting Jimmy's intense gaze – the eyes were the same as Castiel's but the look and soul behind them were totally different – immediately made her mouth dry and she looked away. Jimmy nodded, his mouth twisting in an ugly smile.

"I thought so."

"Jimmy, I'm –"

"Save it, Louise. I don't want to hear it. Just go and do whatever it is you do. You've got a case to solve, right?"

Grateful for an excuse to avoid looking at Jimmy, Louise turned and tried to avoid running down the corridor. Keeping her eyes glued to the EMF meter, she didn't fight it when they began to sting and tears began to streak down her face.

When had she turned into such a life-wrecking failure? Why had she even considered that having friends was a good thing? And just when had everything gone so fucking wrong?


	31. Sugar, We're Goin' Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam is awesome and Louise has a heart-to-heart with Jimmy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

**Chapter 31. Sugar, We're Goin' Down**

"Teresa Ellis," Dean reported when he got back after investigating the latest disappearance. "Apartment 2F. Boyfriend reported her missing around dawn. Cracks all over the place and there was ectoplasm."

"I'd say this sucker's coming from the walls," Sam said. "Between that and the hair you guys found in the vents…"

"But the building's clean," Louise said. After drowning in her misery last night, she found that she was a lot better today if she just focused on the case and didn't think about it or look at Jimmy, who was sitting on the sofa and ignoring everybody. "So who could it be?"

"Maybe we're looking in the wrong place," Jo said, picking up a photograph. "Look. This is the field where this building was built. But take a look at the one next door."

Louise squinted at it.

"Bars on the windows," Sam said.

"We're next door to a prison!" Dean realised.

' _Fantastic,'_ Louise thought as Jo called Ash for more information. _'A homicidal prison ghost. Just what we need.'_

The prison turned out to be Moyamensing Prison, which had been demolished in 1963 and used to execute prisoners in the same field that the apartment was built on. Louise grimaced when Ash sent a hundred and fifty seven names of executed prisoners through and Sam was stuck with the cruddy job of trying to narrow the list down.

"Herman Webster Mudgett?" he frowned suddenly. "Wasn't that H. H. Holmes' real name?"

"You're kidding," Jimmy said. Louise jumped; that was the first time he'd spoken since last night. "The serial killer?"

"Who is he?" Jo said.

"America's first mass murderer," Dean said. "Before anyone even knew what one was."

"He confessed to…how many murders was it?" Louise said.

"Twenty seven," Sam and Jimmy said at the same time. Jimmy just shrugged uncomfortably when everyone stared at him.

"But they think he killed hundreds, right?" Louise said after a moment. Sam nodded.

"And his victim of choice?" Dean added. "Pretty, petite blondes. He used, uh…chloroform to kill 'em. Which is what I smelled last night."

"And at his place, the cops found human remains and bits of bloody blonde hair," Louise said as the story came back to her.

"You sure know how to pick 'em," Dean said to Jo, who grimaced.

"So we just salt and burn him, right?" she said.

"Good luck with that," Louise said with a hollow laugh. "He got himself buried under tonnes of concrete. So nobody could mutilate his corpse like he mutilated those women, 'cause that's what people used to do back in those times."

"I think we've got a bigger problem," Sam said. "He built an apartment in Chicago that he called the Murder Castle."

"Oh, I remember reading about that," Jimmy said thoughtfully. "He had all these traps around: trapdoors, acid vats, huge deep pits…he didn't want anybody getting to him."

Louise smiled, glad that he was finally returning to his normal self. But he shot her a dark look when he noticed and her smile melted quicker than hot butter.

"He also had secret chambers in the walls," Sam said. "He'd lock his victims in them and keep 'em alive for days. Some he'd suffocate, others he'd let starve to death."

"So Teresa might still be alive in the walls!" Jo said. "We have to find her!"

"I'll go get the sledgehammers so we can smash the walls in," Louise offered. If she had to spend another second around Jimmy, she might lose it!

-LW-

"Nothing," Louise reported into her phone. "Yeah, I'll tell you if I find anything. I'll go northwest, okay?"

She hung up and began to slide into another narrow section of wall. She was very grateful that Sam had offered to work with Jimmy so that they didn't have to leave him alone, though she hadn't liked the grilling that he'd put her through beforehand.

" _Okay, what's up?" Sam hissed as the others made plans in the other room. "You and Jimmy were best buddies before Pontiac. Now he won't even look at you. What the hell's going on?"_

" _He finally realised what a fuck-up I am," Louise laughed darkly._

" _What! No! That's not true, Lou!"_

" _It is, Sam! I'm the reason his family's dead!"_

" _But you're –"_

" _He said it himself, Sam! To my face! And it's true! I completely forgot about them when I got my brand new angel friend who probably hates me now and is going through God knows what in Heaven! I should've checked in on them! But I was a coward and look what happened! They're dead because of me! Hell, I didn't even give them my number in case anything went wrong! I gave it to Meg but not them!"_

" _Louise!" Sam said sharply. "It wasn't your fault! So you made a mistake. We all do it! You've gotta stop beating yourself up over it!"_

" _Sam –"_

" _You know how I told you about Jess?" Sam said suddenly. Louise fell silent in shock because this was the first time Sam had spoken about Jess in months. "How I was having visions of her death but I ignored them? I should've listened to them! Maybe she'd have survived! She – she was innocent, Lou. She didn't deserve to get dragged into this."_

" _But you couldn't help that, Sammy," Louise said, wondering what Jess had to do with the Novaks. "You didn't have any reason to think that those visions were real. And of course she didn't deserve it. But she might have been killed later by – by something else. Like a ghost or something. You know how many innocent people are dragged into this stuff."_

_Sam nodded triumphantly and Louise swore under her breath when she realised what she'd said._

" _You didn't have any reason to think that the demons would go after Amelia and Claire," he said. "And if you hadn't been there in the first place, the vampires might've killed Claire. Who knows what else might have gotten to them – and Jimmy – if you hadn't summoned Castiel? Who knows if something other than those demons would've gotten them? Hell, Cas said that Heaven had plans for Dean, so how do you know that he wouldn't have come later?"_

_Louise looked away, biting her lip._

" _You can't keep beating yourself up over this, Lou. I tormented myself for months over Jess. But you and Dean were right. I had to start moving on and realise that it wasn't my fault. And…I still blame myself. I know that it wasn't my fault but I – I still blame myself. Because she was innocent and she should never have been dragged into this mess and everybody_ I _love seems to die as well…"_

_Louise gave Sam a small, sad smile._

" _Dean's right," she said. "You_ are _a chick."_

_Sam scowled and slapped her gently around the head but Louise knew that he wasn't really irritated._

But even with that mini chick flick moment, Louise still couldn't bring herself to face Jimmy. Sam may have been right and it wasn't her fault but she still felt responsible and she just couldn't stand to see the dark look on Jimmy's face when he'd previously looked at her with warmth and friendship.

When she made it all the way to the end of the wall and found nothing, Louise knew that her chances of finding Holmes were close to none. Groaning to herself, she turned around in the narrow space and tried to find the nearest way out. When she finally got to a wide enough space, she decided to throw caution to the wind and she raised her sledgehammer and began to smash at the wall. Coughing and choking in the smoke, she emerged into a hallway and leaned against the wall to steady herself before heading down the hallway in search of Sam, Jimmy, Jo and Dean. To her relief, she found Sam, Dean and Jimmy in the next hallway around the corner.

"I didn't find anything," she wheezed to them. She was pleasantly surprised when Jimmy didn't shoot her a dark glare, though he still wouldn't look at her. But hey, she'd take what she could get.

"Yeah, we know," Dean said, his fists clenched. "He got Jo."

Louise's eyes widened.

"What? How?"

"I left her by herself. Dammit! It's my fault!"

"Hey, calm down," Sam said quickly. "We'll find her, okay? We'll take another look in the walls."

"We didn't find anybody in the walls," Jimmy spoke up. "She has to be somewhere else."

Dean just grimaced.

"Let's go back to the apartment, okay?" Louise suggested. "Sit down, clear our heads, plan out how we're gonna get Jo back."

When they were back inside the apartment, Louise turned to Jimmy with a sour smile.

"Bet you're gonna say how this is Dean's fault, right?" she laughed darkly.

"Actually, no." Jimmy crossed his arms. "There was nothing he could have done. Just like with you and…and Amelia and Claire and me."

Louise's eyebrows shot up. What was with Jimmy's new attitude?

"You're kidding, right?" she said. "I ditched Amelia and Claire. I didn't leave them any way to get in touch and –"

"And that's pretty much the only thing you did wrong in this whole mess," Jimmy interrupted. "I'm…sorry that I blamed you for everything. I was the stupid idiot who wanted a bigger mission in life when I didn't realise that my true purpose was with my family and said yes to that angel. Rachel and Tom were the sons of bitches who went after my family and – and killed them. You couldn't have known that they'd have been targeted."

Jimmy took a deep breath.

"And…and something else could have gotten them anyway. If you hadn't come to Pontiac the first time when you did, then…we might have lost Claire. So…thank you."

Louise was staring at Jimmy in shock. What was with his sudden face-heel turn?

"And about the Castiel mess…well, I'm hurt that you prefer that angel over me. That's partly why I lashed out. But honestly? I can't blame you. You knew me for all of two days but him for two months. I was just so hurt that you preferred the guy possessing me over…me."

Louise gave Jimmy a soft smile.

"Yeah. I'm sorry. But if it makes you feel better, I kinda hated the guy at first. Not just 'cause he was a douchebag but also 'cause he was possessing you and Dean was just getting over being possessed for months."

Jimmy shrugged, a tiny smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. Louise had a sudden sneaking suspicion.

"Sammy didn't put you up to this, did he?"

Jimmy did grin this time.

"Yeah. While we were in the walls. He was…pretty persuasive. He told me about – about Jess."

Louise gaped. Sam never told anybody else about Jess!

"He also told me a bit about your dad. And it helped me see that you've all made mistakes and people have suffered because of them and why you guys beat yourselves up so much over it. The way you grew up…you should have had a normal childhood!"

"Yeah. We should have," Louise said wistfully. "But that's the childhood we got. Can't take it back. And besides, it's the reason we've survived this long. I'd say that I wish I'd never learned how to shoot a gun or salt and burn a corpse but…I see all these innocent people getting killed and not only do I know how to avoid getting myself offed but I can help these people. That's why I still hunt."

She took a deep breath.

"Can I tell you a secret?" she murmured. "Something I've never even told Dean?"

Jimmy's eyes widened and he leaned in.

"Sam…asked me to come with him. When he left for Stanford. He told me that I could get out of the life and start over. Something normal. Find a guy, settle down…have an apple pie life."

Louise smiled sadly at the memory.

"Sammy's my baby brother and I'd do _anything_ for him. But Dean…I couldn't leave him. Sam was already leaving and I knew it'd crush Dean if I left. So I stayed and I never told him because I knew it'd kill him and he'd tell me to get out and have a normal life, even if he didn't really want me to. And I'm glad I did stay. Normalcy…it's not for me. I have to help people. I'd find one hunt to go on and tell myself that it was just that one hunt and then it'd turn into more and I'd be back to hunting. I know it. So I figured…why torture myself with trying to live a normal life? I know my purpose in life. And it ain't much – hell, sometimes it fucking sucks – but it's all I got."

Louise patted Jimmy on the shoulder.

"It'll get better," she said quietly. "You'll see. Losing Dad…it still fucking hurts like someone stabbed me in the chest with a rusty blade. But I'm getting better. And I know that even if I never get over it, it'll be okay."

She leaned in.

"Can I tell you another secret? Cas gave me a bit of a sneak peek at Heaven. Amelia and Claire…they're up there, reliving all their best moments. That's what Heaven is; your own little bit of paradise where you replay all your best memories. And if they got lucky and they're soul mates – which you'd think a mom and small child would be – then they're together."

The smile Jimmy gave her was one of the widest she'd seen from him in a long time.

"Thanks, Louise."

"Hey!" Dean said sharply before Jimmy could say anything else. Louise and Jimmy jumped. "We think we know where Jo is: the sewer system, like Holmes' old basement. And Ellen's catching the next flight out here so we'd better kick our asses into gear."

Louise gulped, immediately terrified at the prospect of a pissed Ellen, and this was more than enough motivation for her to hurry after Sam and Dean with Jimmy.

-LW-

Armed with a metal detector and shovels, the four of them roamed the streets of Philadelphia until the detector went crazy over an empty field. Dean, Louise and Jimmy began to dig until they uncovered a metal trapdoor, at which point they grabbed shotguns and carefully climbed down the ladder into the sewers.

" _We're goin' down, down in an earlier round_ ," Louise sang to herself. " _And sugar, we're goin down swinging, I'll be your number one with a bullet –_ "

"Ya mind?" Dean snapped. Louise scowled and stopped singing.

Once down in the narrow sewer tunnels, they had to crawl on all fours in order to fit and it was slow work. Louise's gut was twisting in worry at what they might find of Jo when they found Holmes but, to her enormous relief, Jo was still alive and kicking when they got there. Dean shot Holmes, who was attacking her, to disperse him and then they used an iron crowbar to pry open her wooden coffin and then free the missing woman, Teresa.

"You okay?" Louise said to Jo, who nodded.

In order to trap Holmes, they had to use Jo as bait, though nobody liked this plan at all. Thankfully, it went off without a hitch and Sam, Dean, Louise and Jimmy managed to spring their trap, catch Holmes in a circle of salt and prevent Jo from being injured. Once out of the sewers, they hijacked a cement truck and used it to fill up the place with several hundred tonnes of cement, keeping Holmes trapped and preventing the salt from being disturbed by other forces such as rain.

However, they then had to deal with a force far more terrifying than H. H. Holmes: a pissed Ellen. The drive back to Nebraska was made in frosty silence and then, back at the Roadhouse, where Louise was horrified to learn from Jo the real reason that Ellen was so pissed.

"Turns out that my dad had a partner on his last case," Jo spat. "Funny, he usually worked alone and so did this guy. But…I guess my father thought he could trust him. Huge mistake. Guy screwed up, my dad got killed."

"But what does this have to do with –"

"It was your father, Dean."

Louise froze, her mouth open.

"W-What?" she croaked.

"Why do you guys think John never told you about us? He couldn't come back and look Mom in the eye afterwards." Jo looked away. "Just…go. Get out of here. Please."

Louise immediately got into the Impala, feeling as though her stomach was sinking right out of her body. It was a curse. It had to be. Why else would they get everybody they knew killed? Maybe this was for the best. If they didn't hang around Jo, they couldn't get her killed. And if they could find somewhere to drop Jimmy off…yeah, that'd be best. Because if another person close to her got killed because of them, Louise didn't know if she could take it.


	32. Jailhouse Rock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There be a lot of breaking out of tight spaces. And Cas is forced to make a difficult choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> UGGGHHHHH MISHA IS AN AMAZING ACTOR BUT PLEASE STOP TORTURING CAS BBY. AND THE DESTIEL SUBTEXT. YEAH DEAN YOU'RE PINING FOR SOMEONE BUT NOT A LADY. MAYBE TAKE AWAY THE 'Y' AND CHANGE THAT WORD TO ANGEL. OR MORE SPECIFICALLY CAS. YOU'RE PINING FOR CAS.
> 
> Also, I know that it only took one episode to break Castiel in canon. But I'm choosing to extend that time here. Why? Because in season 4, Cas had barely any interaction with the Winchesters; he and Dean were acquaintances at best – not friends till S5, where he proved that he was with them – and he obviously didn't think very highly of Sam. But here, he's got far stronger emotional attachments, so there's more to erase and it's more difficult.

**Chapter 32. Jailhouse Rock**

Baltimore, Maryland, was their next stop, where they were caught by the cops in suspicion of murdering a woman called Karen Giles and Dean was in a heap of crap after faking his death in St Louis (which Louise totally knew would come back to haunt them), although Jimmy was damn lucky enough to have been in the Impala when Sam, Dean and Louise were caught and managed to avoid capture. Even the fact that the Winchesters' stories matched up to a tee despite them being kept away from each other wasn't enough to help them and a spirit going around leaving DANASHULPS on every piece of paper she could find was not helping.

However, with the help of the good cop, Diana Ballard, they found out that Dana Shulps wasn't a person but an anagram of the place the spirit's body was hidden by Pete Sheridan, the bad cop. It turned out that the spirit was of Claire Becker, a drug dealer who had disappeared eight or nine months ago (and whose name had made Jimmy wince when he learned). Pete had murdered her to prevent her from ratting him out about a deal he'd done with her and he'd also murdered Karen and her father, who had knowledge of his guilt, to cover his tracks. Diana had shot Pete before he could kill Dean and pin everything on him and then turned her back while the Winchesters got the hell out of dodge. However, the damage was done and Dean was now back in the authorities' sights.

"So that's where we are," Louise sang as they sped out of Baltimore after salvaging the Impala from the impound lot. "On the road so far…"

"Who sang that?" Jimmy frowned. Louise grinned shortly.

"Me."

She leaned back in her seat and looked up at the roof of the Impala, wishing she could see the stars outside. How was Castiel? It had been a good month since he'd been dragged to Heaven and she prayed to God, if he was out there, that the angel was alright.

-LW-

Hoping that nir distraction would keep Naomi occupied, Sariel slipped back into the office and over to where Castiel was strapped down to the chair. Ne quickly undid nir younger brother's bonds and pulled the angel off the chair.

"S-Sariel?" Castiel said in confusion. "What are you –?"

"Shh! We don't have long!" Sariel hissed, pulling Castiel out of the office.

"Why are you helping me?" Castiel said, following Sariel through the winding halls of Heaven. "You abandoned me to Naomi not long ago."

"Don't remind me," Sariel muttered. "I felt bad. You're one of the only angels who doesn't hate me. I couldn't just leave you there."

Hearing the sound of angels up ahead, Sariel ducked into a side corridor and pulled Castiel with nem. Ne used a little of nir grace to shield Castiel from the angels, banking on the fact that most angels would want to leave nem alone and so not investigate, and nir gambit paid off when the angels paused and turned the other way. Once they were gone, Sariel and Castiel slipped out and continued on their way.

"I can get you out of here," Sariel said. "But my distraction won't last long. I used most of that grace to shield the fact that it was me. Once you're out of here, go and find the Winchesters. Hide them from angels. You should be safe with them."

Castiel stared at nem.

"You are asking me to disobey Heaven," ne said. "I will fall. I will be useless to Sam, Dean and Louise."

Sariel's glistening silver wings shook in irritation.

"If these Winchesters are as great as you say then they won't care whether you're falling or not," ne said. "And if you really want to keep your strength then I can take you back there and you can let Naomi stick that drill into your eye again."

"No," Castiel said quickly. "But…isn't there anything that you can do? I would be useless as a human, even if they didn't care."

"If I did anything, all the other angels would know it was me," Sariel said. "And…I'm not ready. I'm sorry. But I've spent millennia trying to get back my older brothers' trust and respect and I'm not going to throw that away."

Castiel understood and ne was grateful that Sariel was even doing this. However, ne was still irritated that Sariel would not help nem further. If Dean was an archangel, ne knew, he would spare no effort in helping nem in any way he could, even if he suffered. Ne was certain that Louise would be just as loyal and self-sacrificing as her older brother. And Sam…ne hoped that Sam would also do the same.

The thought of the Winchesters suddenly sent a jolt of agony lancing through nem. Castiel groaned and stopped, clutching at nir celestial head. It was not pain that humans could ever hope to understand, as it was not physical or emotional but pain to nir very grace, but it was still pain nonetheless.

"What's wrong?" Sariel said impatiently.

"I…should not do this," Castiel said slowly. Ne straightened up. "I must go back. Naomi was right. These Winchesters are a burden and I must be rid of them. They are doing nothing but poisoning me against Heaven and my true family."

Sariel sighed and grabbed Castiel. The younger angel's black wings flared out in an aggressive show but Sariel just spread nir own glimmering silver wings out wider until Castiel backed down and nir dark wings folded against nem in an act of submission.

"Naomi messed with you bad," Sariel said guiltily. "I'm sorry that I didn't help earlier, Castiel."

"I'm…grateful that you are helping now," Castiel groaned as nir grace began to throb painfully again. "I…I have to get to Louise…and Dean and Sam…they can help…but it's wrong…I must obey…I have to return and allow Naomi to properly re-educate me…it is the will of Heaven…but the Winchesters need me…"

Sariel sighed again.

"Look, Castiel," ne said. "You're going to fall for rebelling against Heaven like this and choosing these humans and your grace is going to diminish and weaken. I want to be certain that this is what you want. If you really don't want to fall then I can take you to some corner of Heaven and hide you out. Your grace won't fade but you won't be able to leave without detection."

Castiel paused to consider this. Ne could keep nir grace…but then ne thought of Sam, Dean and Louise. What would they do if they were in nir position? The answer immediately sprang to mind. They would rebel. They would fall. They would do anything to help nem because they were nir friends and ne hoped that they had forgiven nem for lying or else ne was going to have a very unpleasant time on Earth.

"I'm sure," Castiel said firmly. "Sam, Dean and Louise could do the same for me. I'm sure of it. I want to help them. I…have not felt happiness like this in so long and if I have, I probably cannot remember it. I must show them the same faith and loyalty that they would show me."

Sariel stared at nem fondly.

"You always were one of my favourites, Castiel," ne said. Castiel felt pride begin to well in nem and nir feathers puffed happily. "You always had more heart than the rest of us put together. That time in Egypt…well, you don't remember it but you were the only one to protest about how wrong it was to kill the infants whose doors weren't splashed with lamb's blood. Naomi hated you for that but I…I found your courage admirable."

Castiel's wings fluffed up even more and ne glowed faintly.

"I just wish I had half your courage," Sariel finished, looking away.

"Then come with me," Castiel said. "You don't have to stay here."

Sariel shook nir head.

"I do," ne said. "I love Michael and Raphael. I can't just leave them. I'm sure you understand, Castiel."

Castiel did understand. This was the loyalty that Sam, Dean and Louise demonstrated to each other and nir respect for Sariel grew. In nir opinion, the archangel had made up for nir mistake centuries ago but most of Heaven still distrusted Sariel, yet Sariel still remained loyal to nir older brothers. Even if Sariel was lacking in courage, Castiel admired nir loyalty.

"Thank you, Sariel," ne said. "I'm very grateful that you chose to help me."

They left Naomi's winding corridors. Sariel smiled and rubbed the back of Castiel's angelic head fondly, in a move that only trusted angels did to each other.

"I couldn't leave you," ne said. "Not after you looked at me like that. You're one of the youngest, Castiel – you're a baby angel."

Ne scratched the feathers on the back of Castiel's head again. Castiel scowled.

"I am not a fledgling, Sariel," ne said irritably. "I am several thousand years old." Ne looked away suddenly. "My apologies. I should not have spoken to you like that."

"It's okay," Sariel said. "I don't mind. Just don't show me disrespect or I _will_ kill you."

Castiel knew that the archangel would.

"Go." Sariel shoved Castiel gently. "Find the Winchesters. And if you really, truly need help then pray and I'll try and assist you. Just…only if you're really desperate, okay? I don't want to get in trouble with Michael."

"I understand," Castiel said. "Thank you, Sariel."

Ne scratched the back of Sariel's eagle head and the archangel's grace resonated contentedly. One of Sariel's heads suddenly whipped around and ne pushed Castiel away.

"Go!" ne said. "Naomi's looking for you."

Castiel nodded. Ne turned, spread nir black wings and then plummeted towards Earth, nir wings tucked around nem protectively.


	33. Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's lots of blood. And I have to add in a new warning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Bit of a short chapter last time but it couldn't be helped. I originally crammed the first bit of this into there but it didn't fit, since that chapter was all about escaping.
> 
> Also, this chapter is named after the MCR song. Just a fun fact. It's a very 'Ruby to Sam' song and I always cackle when I think of them while listening to it.

**Chapter 33. Blood**

"Hey, so get this," Sam said suddenly, frowning at his research. "Greenwood, Missouri. Architect Sean Boyden plummeted to his death from the roof of his home, a condominium that he designed."

Jimmy blinked and looked up from his pancakes. Louise found it very funny that he loved pancakes as much as Castiel, though she didn't bring this up.

"So, what've you got on the case?" she said. Sam thumbed through his notes. Apparently, Boyden had claimed that he'd seen a vicious, wild black dog and then taken a swan dive two days later. However, nobody else had seen it and no one could explain how a dog could get past the doorman of the building, take an elevator to the top floor and torment Boyden to the point where he hid in self-imposed isolation for two days and then jumped off his own building.

"You think it's an actual black dog?" Sam said.

"Sounds more like a chupacabra to me," Louise said. "Those bitches can get into pretty much anywhere. But if it was one, he wouldn't have taken a swan dive and he'd look like he went two rounds with a vampire."

She grimaced, remembering that time in Atlanta, Georgia.

"So what do we do?" Jimmy said. He was very firm about not becoming a hunter but with nowhere to go at the moment, he'd decided to stick around and help out a bit until they knew what to do with him.

"We talk to his partner," Dean said. "Maybe he knows something about Boyden or this 'black dog'. I bet they could hump the crap outta your leg, right?"

He grinned and held up a picture of a snarling black dog. Sam, Louise and Jimmy stared at him until his smile faded.

"What? They could!"

"Sure, Dean," Louise said, rolling her eyes. "Right before they tear you to bits. Though I s'pose there _are_ worse ways to go than getting molested by a spirit dog."

"That's the spirit!" Dean said cheerfully.

"Okay, that was _awful_! Seriously, Dean!"

-LW-

Interviewing Boyden's business partner proved to be very helpful.

"I got no clue why he'd do that," the man said. "I mean, his life was perfect! He was a genius! I'm good but next to him…and it wasn't always that way."

"No?" Dean said.

"You wanna know the truth? He wasn't always a genius. Hell, ten years ago he was working bartender at a place called Lloyd's and that's a total dump."

"So what changed?" Sam said.

"You got me," the man shrugged. "But overnight, he gets this huge commission and then he starts designing buildings like Van Gogh creates paintings and Mozart composes music. It's funny, isn't it? True geniuses seem to die young. To have that sort of talent and throw it away…"

They thanked the man for his time and Dean managed to score a page from the Animal Protection Agency filled with every complaint about anything dog-like: nineteen calls in total. They decided to take on Dr Sylvia Pearlman first and they visited her as Animal Control. She wasn't home but her maid was and the maid invited Sam, Dean and Louise inside when they knocked, while Jimmy waited in the car – they could usually get away with groups of three but four or more people nearly always aroused suspicion.

"I'm not sure where the doctor went," the maid said. "She just up and left. Did you finally find that stray dog?"

"Not yet," Sam said. "Did you ever happen to see it?"

"No. I never even heard it. I almost started to think that she was imagining it but she's not like that…"

"Hey, I read that she was chief surgeon at the hospital," Dean spoke up. "She's gotta be, what, forty two? That's pretty young."

"Youngest ever in the history of the place," the maid said. "She got the position…ten years ago?"

"Huh. An overnight success ten years ago," Sam said.

"Yeah, we know a guy like that," Dean agreed. "And look." He flipped a photo he was holding over to reveal _Lloyd's Bar_ written on the back. Louise's eyebrows rose. Both Boyden and Pearlman had a connection to the bar? There was something fishy going on…

-LW-

"That's weird," Dean commented once the four of them were at Lloyd's Bar. He pointed out some yellow flowers on the side of the crossroads, almost choked by the weeds surrounding them. "Think someone planted these?"

"Yarrow flowers?" Sam said. "They're used in summoning rituals."

"So two people became overnight successes ten years ago when they were hanging out here," Louise said thoughtfully.

"Where there just happens to be a crossroads," Sam added. "You think?"

Dean walked to the centre of the crossroads and dug into the dirt, pulling up a small metal box containing objects such as bones and tiny vials.

"Graveyard dirt and a black cat bone," he commented. "That's serious stuff. Whoever left this here was trying to summon a crossroads demon. Crossroads are where deals are made."

"Like a deal with the Devil?" Jimmy said, his eyes wide.

"Yep," Louise said, shivering. "These guys aren't seeing black dogs. They're seeing hellhounds. Demonic pit bulls."

"Whoever this demon is, it's collecting its payment," Dean said. "That doctor ain't running fast enough."

"So it's just like the Robert Johnson legend?" Sam said. "Selling your soul at the crossroads?"

"Now that I know this stuff, I don't think that was just a legend," Jimmy said. "If you think about it, there are occult references everywhere in his songs. Crossroad Blues, Me and the Devil Blues, Hellhound on my Trail…and the story goes, he died choking on his own blood while hallucinating and muttering about big evil dogs." He was stared at. "What? A-Amelia enjoyed his music."

He grimaced. Louise patted his arm sympathetically, ignoring how her stomach twinged.

"We gotta figure out if anyone else struck any bargains around here," Sam said.

"So basically, we're cleaning up other people's messes?" Dean said. "They're not exactly the perfect poster boys if they're going and willingly making deals, you know."

"Not all of them could have done it for selfish reasons," Louise said. "I mean, these demons can give you practically anything, right? What if they did it to save someone's life?" She knew that if Sam and Dean were in serious trouble, she'd sell her soul without hesitation to save them!

"Yeah but c'mon, making a deal with a demon?" Dean scoffed. "Man, you'd have to be either really desperate or really stupid to do that."

Why did Louise feel like that was going to come back and bite them in the ass?

After a few moments of arguing with Sam, Dean finally caved in and agreed to help whoever was still alive after making their deal and, using the photo in the box of the guy who had originally summoned the demon, they managed to find out his name (George Darrow) and address.

"What's that?" Jimmy pointed at a line of black powder across the doorway of Darrow's apartment.

"Pepper?" Dean suggested. The door suddenly flew open to reveal a middle-aged black man in dirty clothes.

"Who the hell are you?" he demanded.

"Buddy, you went for the wrong shaker," Louise whistled, pointing at the ground. "You wanna keep something evil out, you use salt."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Darrow insisted.

"This." Dean held up Darrow's picture. "You see that hellhound poking around yet?"

"We want to help," Sam said. "Please, just five minutes?"

Darrow let them into his apartment, which was full of paintings, and he poured himself a glass of whiskey.

"What's that stuff out front?" Louise asked.

"Goofer dust. You think you know about keepin' evil away but not about goofer dust?"

Darrow tossed her a small brown pouch.

"What is it?" Sam said.

"Hoodoo. My grandma taught me. Keeps demons away."

"Oh, we know demons," Louise said darkly, her mind drifting back to Rachel and Tom. Jimmy was eyeing the bag up, so she gave it to him.

When they offered to help Darrow, he refused.

"Sometimes, you just gotta lie in the bed you make," he said. Louise admired his attitude and wished that she could save him – anyone who could come to terms with going to Hell was either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid. "I'm the one who called the demon in the first place."

"Why?" Dean said.

"I was weak. Who doesn't wanna be great? I just never thought about the price."

"Was it worth it?" Jimmy said softly.

"Hell no. I asked for talent but I shoulda gone for fame. I'm still broke and lonely, just with a pile of paintings nobody wants. But the worst bit? The demon stuck around for a week, makin' more deals. I tried to warn people but none of 'em listened."

"How many more were there?" Sam said.

"Architect, doctor lady – I know them, they got famous at least – and one more. Evan Hudson, I think. Dunno what he asked for. Don't matter now. We're done for."

"No! There has to be a way!" Sam said.

"Don't you get it? I don't want a way!"

"Look –"

"I brought it on myself and I'm goin' to Hell one way or another! I just want to finish my last painting. Day or two, I'm done. Just tryin' to hold 'em off 'til then. Now go and help someone that wants help. Go on! Git!"

-LW-

"You ever been to a bar called Lloyd's about ten years ago?"

In response, Evan Hudson slammed the door in Dean's face.

"That went well," Louise commented. "What's Plan B?"

Dean answered by kicking the door in and the four of them swarmed into the house and up the stairs. Dean was about to smash Evan's office door but Sam stopped him and just opened it.

"Please don't hurt me!" Evan pleaded.

"We want to help you!" Jimmy said, his hands held out in a placating manner. "We know about your deal, Evan, and we want to stop it."

"How do I know you're not lying?" Evan said suspiciously.

"You don't," Dean shrugged. "But you're running a bit low on options, aren't ya?"

After Dean taunted him for a little bit, Evan revealed that he had made the deal to save his wife when she had terminal cancer and was expected to die at any moment. Dean told the others to use the goofer dust to hold off the hellhound while he summoned the crossroads demon.

"Are you _crazy_?" Louise said hysterically. "You want to _summon_ a demon?"

"I can trap it and exorcise it!" Dean argued. "Buy us some time 'til we find a permanent solution! I mean, it's not easy for these suckers to claw their way back out of the Pit! You saw how pissed Tom and Rachel were!"

"Let one of us come!" Sam said. "You shouldn't face that thing alone!"

"Hell, no!" Dean said. "I ain't putting you in any demon's path! Not after Rachel and Tom!"

"Guys, I can hear it!" Evan cried and Louise froze in terror when she heard it: the low, growling sound of a pissed dog. Dean was out the door before anybody could argue.

"Quick! Cover the windows and door!" Louise shrieked as the barking got louder. "It's here!"

"You –?"

"No, Sam, I didn't make any deals! I can just hear it! Y'know, like…that other stuff!"

To his credit, Sam didn't argue but went to quickly sprinkle goofer dust in a line in front of the windows before making a circle around Evan. As the hellhound's barking got louder, Louise backed up against the wall and clutched at her ears, resisting the urge to sob madly. Now she understood how Boyden had felt compelled to take that swan dive! The barking was driving her insane!

"Louise!" Jimmy grabbed her wrists as Sam used the last of the dust on the door. "Louise, focus! It's not after you! Calm down!"

Louise took a deep breath and nodded shakily. There was silence, which went a long way to helping her state of mind.

"Okay," she croaked. "Okay. I'm good."

The growling started up at that moment. Louise let out a choked sob and Evan whirled around, shaking madly.

"It's right outside the door!" he said hysterically.

"Into the circle!" Sam ordered Jimmy, who nodded and pulled Louise in after him. The door began to rattle and Louise closed her eyes, fighting to breathe evenly and deeply and not fall into hysterics. Why was she so scared? The hellhound wasn't after her! She didn't have to be so terrified!

But Sam had forgotten to cover one entrance: the vents. The grating was blown clean across the room and Louise and Evan screamed when they saw the horrible, ugly blue-black dog with coal red eyes slither into the room and prowl around them, snarling. Louise clutched Jimmy's arm so tightly that she was sure that she was cutting off his circulation.

"How can you see it?" Evan whispered, petrified.

"I can see this stuff," Louise whimpered as the hellhound got closer. "And now I wish I couldn't."

Her eyes squeezed shut when the hellhound began to claw deep marks into the floor in a clear attempt to intimidate them. However, the real terror didn't start until the hellhound began to blow at the goofer dust, its hot breath slowly but surely wearing away at the circle. The minute it was broken, Sam and Jimmy pulled Evan and Louise out of the room.

"Quick, in here!" Sam pointed at a storeroom. But as she bolted towards it, Louise stumbled and that was her undoing. She felt something latch onto her leg and then she was yanked to the ground, winded and with agony blossoming in her leg. She let out a piercing, tortured scream as blood streamed down her leg and stained her slacks.

"LOUISE!" Sam and Jimmy yelled. Louise turned over, trying desperately to bat away the evil hound snapping at her, but this just made her an easier target. The hellhound's paw dragged down her torso and Louise began to cry and shriek as the pain intensified even more, if such a thing was possible, and blood spurted and gushed out of her abdomen. Sobbing hysterically, Louise fumbled for her stomach and screamed again when her crimson, slippery hands slid in between folds of skin and she felt – oh God, was that bone? Was that her rib cage? And that squishy thing…was that an _organ_?

"Louise!" she heard but it sounded fainter and fuzzier than before. Louise felt hot, burning pain again as the hellhound slashed her chest and blood began to bubble up in her throat, making her choke and gurgle. She struggled to draw in breath but no air would make it past her obstructed airway. So this was how she was going to go out…drowning on her own blood…

As she finally managed to draw in another breath, Louise prayed that Sam, Jimmy and Evan were safe. If they were okay then nothing else mattered…


	34. Heaven Help Us

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise begins the Winchester tradition of never freaking staying dead, while Jimmy is forced to make a game-changing decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

**Chapter 34. Stairway to Heaven**

Louise frowned when she saw someone looming over her clearly, even though her surroundings were blurry. It was a woman with short, dark hair, dressed in a tank top and jeans. Huh. How strange.

"Who are you?" she said. She blinked in surprise when she found that she could breathe again. What was going on? " _What_ are you?"

"I think you know what I am," the woman said gently. Louise realised that at some point, she had stood up. Wait. Wasn't she being mauled by the hellhound? Turning, she recoiled when she saw her own bloody body on the ground, her hair strewn around her like a dark halo and her amber eyes open and empty, while the hellhound moved on from her and began to attack the supply closet. So Sam, Jimmy and Evan had gotten to temporary safety. That was good.

"You're a reaper," Louise realised. The woman smiled and nodded.

"Tessa. And you're Louise Winchester."

"So I'm dead."

"Yes."

Louise blinked again and looked down at her bloodstained corpse.

"Wow. Never thought I'd go out like that."

"Death's never what you expect, is it?" Tessa said with a sympathetic smile. "You're taking this a lot better than most other people."

"There's no point in screaming and crying, is there?" Louise said heavily. "It's over."

"It is." Tessa stepped forward and took Louise's hands. Louise looked away. "I know that this is hard, Louise. I know that you won't want to move on; that you'll want to stay with your cousins."

"Brothers," Louise corrected, though she nodded shakily. "Sam and Dean…this'll kill them, Tessa. What are they gonna do?"

"Move on," Tessa said. "It's the only thing they can do. You have a choice, Louise. You can stay behind with them if you want. You can tie yourself to them. But you're not getting back into that body."

Louise froze, her mouth agape.

"But…won't that make me –"

"A vengeful spirit. Yes. You're quick, Louise. You won't turn vengeful at first. But all spirits do. You won't be able to help it. The only other thing you can do is come with me. Move on."

Louise shot a glance back at the hellhound, which had stopped attacking the closet and was standing stiffly. It suddenly turned and slunk away and Louise knew that Dean must have been successful in securing Evan's life. The door was flung open and Sam skidded out and fell down next to her body.

"Louise!" he cried, tears streaming down his cheeks. "No!"

Jimmy approached her body, pale as chalk.

"Sam –"

"No! Leave me alone!" Sam slapped Jimmy's hand away. "She's gone, Jimmy! She's gone! My sister!"

He clutched Louise's bloody body to him and rocked it back and forth, sobbing. Louise felt agony stab her as painfully as the hellhound's claws and she tried to run to Sam but Tessa stopped her.

"You have to make a choice," the reaper said firmly. "You can stay with Sam and Dean and be able to eventually communicate with them but then turn into the very thing they hunt. And then they might have to salt and burn _you_. Or you can move on with me and spare them the additional pain."

Deep down, Louise knew the right choice. With one final, pained look at Sam, she turned back to Tessa.

"Where am I going?" she said. Tessa smiled.

"Don't want to spoil the punchline, do we?" was all she said before pulling Louise into a hug. As the reaper softly stroked her hair, Louise's surroundings began to swim and fade away and she spared one last look at her hysterical brother before everything went white.

-LW-

"What the hell?" Dean bellowed when he crashed into Evan's house and found Sam still clutching Louise close to him. "Sam, what the hell happened?"

Sam just shook his head and buried his face in Louise's hair.

"Hellhound," Jimmy said shakily, his face streaked with tears. "She tripped. Holy crap, Dean, I'm sorry…"

Dean's face darkened and he whirled around to face Evan.

"I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" he roared. "YOU'RE FREE! BUT MY SISTER'S DEAD! SHE'S DEAD! GONE! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY WITH YOURSELF!"

Evan backed away into a wall, white and shaking.

"I –"

"Save it," Dean spat. "I don't want to hear it. Just get out of my sight."

Evan didn't move.

"I SAID GO!"

Evan scrambled to run to another room. Dean bent down and gently took Louise from Sam.

"C'mon," he said shortly, closing Louise's glazed eyes and softly stroking her cheek. "Jimmy, grab a sheet or something."

Jimmy nodded and ran to do what he was told. When he returned with a crisp white sheet, Sam and Dean carefully lifted Louise's body onto it and folded it over her, wrapping her up in it. Numb, Dean picked up the top half of Louise and Sam grabbed her legs and they slowly carried her out to the Impala and slid her into the backseat. This meant that Jimmy had to share the front seat with Sam and Dean but the pale, trembling man didn't protest.

"We can do something," Dean said hoarsely as he pulled out of Evan's driveway. "Make a crossroads deal. Summon an angel. I don't fucking care."

"Dean," Sam said carefully. "Making deals isn't exactly the best idea. Louise wouldn't want –"

"Louise is DEAD because of that ASSHOLE!" Dean snapped. "So I don't give a fuck what she'd want! She's my little sister and I ain't gonna let her just rot!"

"Dean –"

"No! Shut up, Sam! Don't you care about her?"

"Of course I do! But do you know how _pissed_ she'd be if she got back and you'd sold your soul? We'll – we'll think of something. Just don't sell your soul, Dean. Please. Just think this through."

Dean's hands clenched around the steering wheel and he took a deep breath.

"Fine. We'll do it your way. We'll go prance around and ask all the little fairies for help. Happy?"

He turned up his music to drown out Sam's response.

-LW-

Louise blinked. Why was she sitting on an uncomfortable-looking bed? Where was she? Was she in a motel? But she was dead! The sound of the door opening made her whirl around and she froze, any protests or questions dying in her throat when she saw a face that she hadn't seen in over a decade.

"Hey," twelve year old Dean whispered, closing the door behind him. Looking out the window, Louise saw that it was night. "I got that stuff for you, Lou. I hope it's all good."

He reached into the paper bag and pulled out a small packet of sanitary pads. Louise numbly caught them when he threw them, stiff with shock. This…this had happened before! This was the first time she'd gotten her period! She'd screamed and thought she was dying and bleeding out but Dean had known what was going on. Dean had known everything!

"Thanks," Louise whispered, turning the packet over in her hands.

"And I got you something small." Dean glanced around furtively. "I heard that chocolate helps. So…"

He pulled out a few chocolate bars and tossed them to Louise. Louise automatically caught them.

"You okay, Lou?"

"No. Not really. I'm fucking dead, Dean."

Ignoring her response, Dean crossed over to the bed, jumped onto it and awkwardly patted her back, just as he'd done the first time around.

"See? You'll be fine, Lou! Just…put those – things – on. It's normal! You'll see! I'll take care of you because you're my sister!"

Louise suddenly realised where she was. This was one of her best memories…a time when Dean had secretly coddled her and spoiled her while she adjusted to the horrors of bleeding out of a private place once a month and nearly dying of horrible cramps. And where did she relive her best memories?

Heaven.

-LW-

When they pulled over for gas, Jimmy didn't want to get out of the car. But when Sam and Dean left to fill the car up, get snacks and relieve themselves, he knew that he had to go to. He couldn't stay in a car with a dead body!

"Wait up!" His voice was raspy from disuse. He followed Sam and Dean into the gas station, where the only other person was the clerk, who was paging through a porn magazine with a bored look on his face. Jimmy couldn't even find it in himself to be disgusted.

Louise was gone. Dead. Jimmy wanted to kick something. Even when he'd loathed her for getting Amelia and Claire killed, a small part of him had still liked her. There was no denying it – she'd saved Claire from vampires. And Jimmy knew that she didn't intentionally get his family killed. But she still had and so that resentment simmered, finally exploding out when she had inadvertently pushed him too far. The look on her face had filled him with vindictive pleasure and terrible guilt. But then Sam had spoken to him and what he'd said…well, Jimmy just couldn't stay mad at Louise!

He stiffened when the radio nearby began to play static, despite being off. The lights overhead flickered and Sam and Dean were immediately on guard for whatever was causing the disturbance. But Jimmy mentally whined. He knew just what was doing this!

Without warning, a high-pitched shriek filled the air. Sam, Dean and the clerk fell to the ground, yelling and clutching at their ears as any breakable thing shattered and broke. But Jimmy was unaffected. And he knew why.

"What the hell?" Dean bellowed.

"Jimmy," a deep but shrill voice said. Jimmy winced, grabbed at his ears and looked up.

"What?" he demanded. "What do you want, Castiel? You've already taken everything from me! I'm free and I'm not going back!"

"Louise is dead."

"Yeah! I know! Thanks for reminding me!"

"Louise is my friend. I want to help her."

"Then help her! Heal her! Bring her back! Whatever!"

"You know that I cannot do that without a vessel."

"Well, tough luck! This vessel is retired!"

He could feel Castiel's disapproval and disappointment.

"What are you going to do, Jimmy?" the angel said. "Your family is dead. Your friend is dead. Are you ever going to return to Pontiac?"

Jimmy froze. No. He couldn't go back. Not after what happened. So what was he going to do with his life? Follow Sam and Dean around and hunt with them? Was that his new life?

"You can help, Jimmy. You can bring Louise back. But only if you allow me back in."

Jimmy was shaking. Great. Now the angel was making him feel guilty! How could he say no and carry on with the knowledge that he could have given Sam and Dean their joy back? What would Louise do in his situation?

What would Louise do? She'd say yes in a heartbeat if it meant bringing Amelia and Claire back. Jimmy knew it. And it made him feel even worse, because she and her brothers were so self-sacrificing to the point of danger.

' _So, what are you going to do, Jimmy?'_ his conscience sneered. _'Say no and let Sam and Dean bury their sister and try and find another way of bringing her back? Carry on with no purpose now that your family's dead? Or are you going to be a hero for once and give someone else their family back?'_

Jimmy closed his eyes and groaned softly.

"Fine." He clenched his fists in one last action of his own free will. "Okay. Yes, Castiel, you can come back in. But you – you take care of them, okay? You take care of Sam and Dean and Louise like you promised to take care of my family. But actually do it this time. And tell Louise that I'll kick her butt if she feels guilty about this. I know what I'm getting into."

"You have my word, Jimmy. I will protect our friends to the best of my abilities, even if I must suffer to do so."

Brilliant white filled his vision and he felt the angel fitting into his body, filling out every small crack and crevice. He felt himself disconnect from his physical body and drift away…and then there was a fiery explosion and then nothing.

-LW-

Louise bolted upright, coughing and choking. What the – where was she? She'd just been reliving that time in Helena when she was fifteen! And now she was…outside some crummy gas station in the middle of nowhere?

"Louise!" Louise was pulled into a hug so tight that she couldn't breathe.

"Can't – breathe –" she choked. The arms loosened a little and as Louise sucked in large gulps of air, she saw that it was Dean who had attacked her.

"You're alive!" His face was full of wonder. "You're alive, Lou! You're alive!"

"I am?" Louise blinked. "I was in Heaven. What the hell happened?"

"We brought you back." Sam, his face shining with happiness, scootched over closer to hug her as well.

"How? Wait…you didn't make any deals, did you?" Louise said in panic. "Because I –"

"Relax, Lou." Dean stood up and pulled Louise with him, still keeping her in his arms. "We didn't do anything. It was all him."

He nodded at Jimmy. But Louise realised that it wasn't Jimmy. For one, he was standing stiffly and awkwardly. And for another…she could see the familiar figure inside him.

"Cas," she whispered. Dean let her go and she jumped at Castiel and hugged him tightly. "You're okay! Oh, God, you're okay! I was so worried!"

Castiel hugged her back rigidly. Louise could have cried at the familiar feeling.

"I am fine, Louise," he said as she stepped away.

"But – Jimmy – oh, God, he –"

"He consented fully. He knew what he was getting into and he did it to save you, to stop Sam and Dean from making any deals or undertaking any foolish endeavours."

"Oh, Jimmy," Louise whispered, guilt stabbing at her gut again. Her friend was once again strapped to a celestial comet and it was her fault!

"Jimmy told me to tell you that he would 'kick your butt' if you expressed feelings of guilt," Castiel added. Louise laughed and swiped at her eyes.

"Sounds like him. I just can't believe you're okay, Cas!" Louise hugged him again, a warm, fuzzy feeling spreading through her body. "What the hell happened to you?"

"I was being…re-educated," Castiel said. He winced faintly and Louise grimaced, not wanting to know what that entailed. "But then I was saved. By Sa – by a member of my former garrison."

"Former?" Sam said. Castiel gave him a small, twisted smile.

"Escaping like this…it is rebellion against Heaven. And rebellious angels fall and are cut off from Heaven. I will slowly but surely begin to grow weaker, until I am all but human. I had hardly enough strength to resurrect Louise and I had only just left Heaven, so I doubt that I will be able to heal anymore."

Louise gaped. Castiel had given up his home for – for _them_?

"Cas –"

"Don't feel guilty. Any of you. Sar – the angel warned me in explicit detail of what would happen if I returned to you. I chose you three anyway. If I remained in Heaven then I would be subjected to more… _sessions_ , until I broke and became yet another soldier. All of your lessons in humanity and influence on me would have been erased. But you three have shown me more loyalty and kindness in these past few months than I have known in millennia, even when you ordered me to leave after I betrayed you"

Her eyes brimming with tears, Louise pulled Castiel in for another hug. This time, Sam hugged him as well and after receiving glares from his brother and sister, Dean reluctantly joined in. He was the first to pull away and Louise pretended not to see the pleased look he was trying to hide.

"Well, welcome to the family, Cas," Dean said gruffly. "We're broken and messed-up and break anything we touch but we're family. Anybody who rebels against frigging Heaven deserves a place in it."

The brilliant smile and blinding flash of grace in response were more than enough to brighten Louise's whole year.


	35. Welcome to the Black Parade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas learns human stuff, Louise and Dean talk and Louise gets high. Off Cas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I couldn't help it. This chapter got way out of hand but I couldn't stop it. PURE FLUFF ALERT with a small side of angst.
> 
> Also, I'm having doubts about the Destiel build-up. It seems to be going too…I dunno, fast? Strong? I'm terrified that I'm trying to force it, which I don't want because they have so much natural chemistry in canon.
> 
> Thanks to tkdgrl223 for your comment :)

**Chapter 35. Welcome to the Black Parade**

Things were different with Castiel back. First off, he seemed weaker than he had been last time Louise saw him, though she knew that this was because he was cut off from Heaven and was slowly losing his powers. Because of this, they no longer had their pancake breakfast in Austin, even though Castiel could still fly perfectly well, and Sam, Dean and Louise were always nagging him to avoid using his powers if he could help it.

"You gotta save your strength!" Dean growled. "No using your mojo unless you have to!"

"So I'm useless now," Castiel said darkly, crossing his arms in a very human gesture.

"We didn't say that! Sammy and Lou and I are human and do you see us being useless?"

Louise wanted to point out that she could make things fly around and see another plane of existence and Sam was having visions but knew that now wasn't the time.

"We'll train you, Cas," she said instead. "We'll teach you to use a shotgun and hunt and all of this human stuff."

Castiel blinked.

"Why would you do that?"

"'Cause you're one of us and we look out for each other," Dean said firmly, clapping Castiel on the shoulder. Louise didn't know whether she was imagining the fleeting smile that crossed Castiel's face when Dean touched him but she didn't say anything about it.

"You taught Louise all that angel stuff," Sam said with a small grin. "So now we'll teach you all this human stuff."

Castiel definitely smiled this time.

"Thank you. All of you. I – I was worried that I would fall and find that you no longer wanted me around, in which case I would have fallen for nothing."

"Seriously?" Louise exclaimed. "Come on, Cas! You screwed us over but we screw each other over all the time! When – when those angels ripped you away…"

"Dammit, Cas, we were worried about you," Dean said. "We're not gonna kick you out again."

"You were right to tell me to leave that time," Castiel said firmly. "I betrayed you. But it will be different this time. My loyalty lies with you three."

Louise beamed widely and pulled Castiel in for a tight hug.

"Welcome to Team Winchester," Dean said as Louise squeezed Castiel and Sam grinned. "We're screwed up and dysfunctional but hey, we're alright."

This led to the second change: where Castiel had previously taught Louise about her angel half, it now fell to Louise and her brothers to teach Castiel about humanity. Dean, of course, took it upon himself to show Castiel how to use shotguns and weapons other than his angel blade.

"I do not see the point in this," Castiel said, glowering at the shotgun in his hand. Unused to the new weapon, he had missed all but one of the targets and Louise could sense that he wasn't happy. "I have my angel blade, which can kill anything short of an archangel."

"Cas, you're not always gonna be able to flap around and stab the bad guys," Dean said. Louise knew that he was right; already, Castiel's black feathers were losing their glossy sheen and looked dull and limp. She didn't know whether he would lose them or not but she felt saddened at the thought of him losing his wings: one of the most important things about his identity as an angel.

"He's right," she said. "Shotguns are our best friends. We don't have to get close to the monsters to ice them…usually. Trust us, Cas."

Castiel reluctantly nodded and allowed Dean to instruct him more in the art of shooting. Louise blinked when she saw that whenever Dean touched Castiel to correct his stance, the angel's wings fluffed up. Did Castiel enjoy it when Dean touched him?

Castiel's stubborn determination finally paid off by the end of their training session and he had managed to shoot most of the targets set up. Dean grinned and slapped Castiel on the back.

"See? You're getting there!" he said. Louise grinned to herself when she saw that Castiel's wings were puffed again. "Anyway, I need a beer. Coming?"

"I think I'll stay here for a little while," Castiel said. Dean just shrugged and headed back to the motel but Louise grabbed him as he passed and heaved him aside.

"Do you like Cas?" she said immediately. Dean blinked and spluttered.

"What sort of a question –?"

"Answer me, Dean. Honestly. Do you like Cas?"

Dean just glared at her. That was her answer and she grinned at him.

"You do! Don't deny it, Dean. I know you almost like the back of my hand."

"I don't like him, Lou!"

Louise raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"Yeah, right."

Dean growled and shoved her, making her stumble back.

"Can you just stop poking your nose into my fucking life?" he said. Louise crossed her arms.

"I want you to be honest with me, Dean!"

"I _am_ being honest! There is _nothing_ with Cas!"

"But there could be?" Louise persisted. Dean scowled and looked away.

"Yeah," he muttered. "There could be. But I dunno if I want there to be."

"Why not? He's clearly fond of you, Dean."

"He's fond of _you_. If anyone was gonna like him, I'd say you."

Louise rolled her eyes.

"Please, Dean. He's technically my uncle. And besides, you know me. When have I ever liked someone like that for more than a few days? He's like my brother."

"I'm not gay, Lou!"

"Trust me, you've slept with enough chicks to reassure me of _that_. But you _can_ like both!"

"Just drop it! Even if I did like him, that's not even his body so I ain't making a move!"

"I'm not going to tell you to, Dean," Louise said, rolling her eyes and trying to ignore the twinge of pain she felt when thinking about Jimmy. Dean blinked and stared at her. "Unlike Sam, I'm not that much of a girl. Unless you both like each other and are just being total asses about it. But he's only been back for a few days, so…"

"Okay, clear something up for me," Dean interrupted. "You're always carrying on about how I deserve happiness and now you're not telling me to go for something?"

"It could just be a crush," Louise said, crossing her arms. "I've seen how they work out. And besides, I don't even know if Cas even knows what a crush is. Just don't go for it unless you're absolutely sure, okay?"

Dean gave her a small smile.

"Thanks, Lou. I thought you'd be one of those 'tell him how you feel!' chicks."

"Not everything's about getting together and living happily ever after." Louise rolled her eyes again. "I've never been with someone and I'm perfectly fine. But seriously, if you're happy to be besties with Cas for the rest of your life then I'm happy. It's your choice. I just wanted you to be honest with me."

Dean grinned and ruffled her hair. Louise scowled and hit him.

"But I'll tell you something," she said. "His wings only fluff up when he's happy. And whenever you touch him? He looks like a frigging pillow explosion."

Dean's grin widened, which Louise found simply adorable (not that she'd tell him. He'd drop her off a cliff if she used that word in relation to him). But they'd only known Castiel for a few months and only had him back for a few days and Louise didn't want to mess up anything between them. It could just be a crush and it could go away; Louise was well-versed with those damn things.

And besides, she was serious when she said that she didn't play matchmaker. That was in Sammy's eternal chick domain, not hers.

"I always knew you were a little gay, though!" she smirked. Dean shoved her.

"Shut up, Lou!"

"No, seriously! The way you were gushing over Gordon! And that guy in Seattle!"

"I will end you, Louise. And then I'll dump you where they'll never find you."

"I'm glad you're at least accepting that you're a little…not-straight. Hell, I don't even know what _I_ am."

"What do you mean?"

Louise sighed and looked away.

"I mean that I'm a freak, Dean. You know something? My whole life, I've never felt the urge to sleep with anyone. _Anyone_. You and Sam go off and happily spend nights with women and I just sit there and wonder why I freak out when someone even stares at my chest! I'm…broken, Dean!"

Louise looked away, her jaw set, trying to blink back tears.

"Lou, look at me. Dammit, look at me!"

Louise turned around and nearly stumbled when Dean grabbed her shoulders.

"You're not a freak, Lou. And you're not broken. You're just…different. And different's good."

Louise snorted.

"No, I'm glad you don't like sex!" Dean insisted. Louise wondered if he was just trying to make her better. "That means I don't have to worry about protecting my baby sister's innocence."

"What innocence?" Louise said darkly. "I've seen porn. I know how it all works. It just…repulses me."

"And you really think that makes you any less of a person?" Dean said. "C'mon, Lou. You're not defined by how many people you sleep with. Do you think any less of me 'cause I sleep around?"

"Hell no," Louise said immediately. "You'd still be a dick whether you got ass or not."

"And you're still an ass even if you don't get any dick," Dean smirked. Louise glowered at him. "Did you really think that I'd think less of you for not sleeping around?"

Louise shrugged uncomfortably. Dean groaned and pulled her in for a very quick hug.

"Dammit, Lou! I'm not gonna think any less of you or Sammy unless you go off and join the demons or something. Got it?"

Louise grinned weakly.

"Got it. Thanks, asshole."

"Shut up, bitch. I need a beer. Coming?"

Louise turned around and looked at Castiel, who seemed to be looking around at his wings.

"Nah. I think I'll stay out here with Cas for a bit."

"Okay." Dean clapped her on the shoulder and headed back to their motel room. Louise crossed over to Castiel, her boots crunching on the leaves underfoot.

"What's up, Cas?" she said, plopping down next to him. "Something up with your wings?"

Castiel nodded, looking utterly miserable.

"They…require grooming," he said. "Normally, we would ask another trusted angel to preen our wings for us but…"

"But you're cut off and no other angel would do it for you now," Louise guessed. Castiel nodded. "How about I preen them for you?"

Castiel stared at her, shocked.

"I – I can't –"

"Whoa, slow down. What's up?"

Castiel took a deep breath.

"Grooming…is not something to be taken lightly. Only an angel's most trusted companions are allowed to touch their wings. And for you to be able to touch my wings, I would…have to bring them into this plane of existence."

"That's bad?"

"It leaves me vulnerable. It would be the only part of my true form that could be hurt, so the pain would be unimaginable. Feeling things with my true form is…different to feeling them through a vessel. I trust that you would not hurt me but I would still feel…exposed."

Louise grimaced and patted his shoulder.

"I get it. Sorry I can't help, Cas."

Castiel paused for a moment, frowning. Then he quickly shucked off his trench coat, suit jacket, white shirt and tie, looked down and closed his eyes, as though he was concentrating. Louise opened her mouth to ask what he was doing when there was a loud clap of thunder and, in a flash of lightning, the outlines of Castiel's wings appeared behind him. Another flash and they were solid, looking just like massive bird wings. Louise blinked and reeled back. They looked like his intangible wings but at the same time…they were so different! How could she describe it?

"They look…different," she whispered in awe.

"They are on another plane of existence now." Castiel sounded slightly breathless. "This…is the closest approximation to their true form that a human's mind can make."

Her mouth still open, Louise slowly shuffled closer and reached out her hand. When she touched his left wing, a jolt of electricity shot through her that made her hair stand on end and Castiel jerked his wing away.

"Sorry," the angel said quickly. "That was…not what I expected."

"You're telling me," Louise said, patting her hair down. "Okay, how do I do this?"

"Smooth down the feathers and set them into place. But be gentle, please. If you encounter any stubborn feathers, I will tell you if they need to be plucked."

Louise carefully raked her fingers through the feathers, which felt dry and brittle. To her frustration, they wouldn't stay in place!

"This isn't working, Cas," she scowled. Castiel's head tilted.

"Oh. I see the problem. Now that my wings are in physical form…there should be small glands at the base of my wings."

Louise gently felt around at the base of Castiel's wings, until she found a small knob.

"This it?" she said.

"Yes. That is what you would call a uropygial gland in birds. We don't usually have them but now that my wings are in this dimension…"

"Easier for our minds to comprehend?" Louise said. Castiel nodded.

"Most humans see angel wings as identical to those of birds. So in order for your mind to process my wings in this plane, it seems that I am equipped with everything that birds use to care for their wings."

Louise's eyebrows rose.

"Okay, so I just press lightly…" She applied gentle pressure and an oily liquid spilled over her fingers. Louise closed her eyes, suddenly overwhelmed by the onslaught of smells. There was ozone and thunderstorms and wildflowers and the scent of wilderness and freedom and flying high in the sky with not a care in the world – just an angel, wild and free and beautiful, and oh God, it just smelled like Castiel and Louise couldn't take it!

"Holy crap!" Louise pulled away, bringing her hands up to her nose to smell the sweet oil.

"Are you okay, Louise?" Castiel said immediately. "What's wrong?"

"I – I'm fine," Louise said giddily. "I just…oh, God. That was an acid trip if I've ever had one."

"My oil is not acidic. But if it is really that unpleasant –"

"What? Hell, no! It's just the opposite!"

Unable to help herself, Louise leaned over Castiel's wings and threw her arms around his neck, nuzzling into his hair. Castiel stiffened.

"Louise…what are you doing?"

"I don't even know!" Louise continued to rub her cheek against his hair affectionately. "I just – that oil – it smells so good – I just feel this need –"

"Ah," Castiel said softly. "Those particularly close to the angel can be affected by their scent and feel the urge to show great love and affection. It assists with bonding. I have been affected several times while preening those that I am close to. It must be affecting your angel half."

Louise giggled uncharacteristically, kissing Castiel's head.

"Dude, what the hell?" Dean exclaimed. He and Sam had approached unheard and were staring at Castiel with a mixture of shock and awe. "What'd you do to our sister?"

"Louise offered to groom my wings for me," Castiel said as Louise, still giggling, planted a sloppy kiss on his cheek. "When preening angels that we are close to, we may be affected by their scent. Louise's angel blood seems to allow her to be affected by my oil, which only exists in this dimension."

"So, what, it's like angel catnip?" Sam looked utterly fascinated, slowly approaching and staring at Castiel's wings.

"I…suppose that would be a suitable analogy."

"Dean! Sammy!" Louise trilled. "He smells nice! Don't you just wanna hug him? He's so adorable!"

"Alright, Lou, that's enough getting high off angel oil," Dean snickered, crossing over and pulling Louise's arms from around Castiel's neck. "You need our help, Cas?"

Castiel stared at Dean, wide-eyed.

"I…yes. I trust you and Sam enough to touch my wings. Just be gentle."

Sam looked like Christmas had come early. Castiel gave him and Dean the same instructions that he had given Louise and by the time Sam and Dean had coated their hands in oil, Louise had calmed down enough to be able to slicken up her hands and stroke down Castiel's feathers, red-faced and not looking at Sam and Dean.

"I'm never letting you forget this, Lou," Dean grinned. "You got high off Cas!"

"Shut up," Louise mumbled, glad that she was working on Castiel's left wing by herself while Sam and Dean tackled Castiel's right wing.

"I just can't believe it," Sam murmured. "I'm touching an angel's wings! Have any other humans done this, Cas?"

"Not that I can remember," Castiel said. "We have not been down here in two millennia and before then, we simply watched over humanity and guided them. We didn't…befriend them in this way."

Sam's awestruck look intensified. Louise continued to stroke down Castiel's feathers, ignoring how giddily happy she felt and how she just wanted to keep sniffing her hands. To distract herself from this, she began to hum a song at random under her breath.

"What are you humming?" Castiel asked.

"Probably one of her dark and gloomy songs," Dean snorted. Louise glared at him. Why did he have to keep insulting her music?

"'Welcome to the Black Parade'," she muttered. "My favourite song."

"Can you sing?" Castiel requested. "Up in Heaven, close angels sing to each other. I…miss it."

Louise could feel his sadness and wistfulness and she blinked back tears. Was the angel oil just intensifying her own powers?

"Yeah. Sure thing, Cas." She took a deep breath and hummed the piano intro. " _When I was a young boy, my father took me into the city to see a marching band. He said, 'Son when you grow up, would you be the saviour of the broken, the beaten and the damned?' He said, 'Will you defeat them? Your demons and all the nonbelievers, the plans that they have made? Because one day, I'll leave you, a phantom, to lead you in the summer, to join the Black Parade.'_ "

Blinking back tears, Louise focused on patting Castiel's feathers down, leaving them glossy and shiny, while still singing softly.

" _We'll carry on, we'll carry on. And though you're dead and gone, believe me, your memory will carry on…_ "

Louise bit her lip, ignoring how Sam and Dean were looking at her.

" _A world that sends you reeling from decimated dreams. Your misery and hate will kill us all. So paint it black and take it back, let's shout it loud and clear. Defiant to the end, we hear the call…_ "

Dammit, why was she getting so emotional? Sure, she always nearly cried whenever she heard this song but still! She concentrated on continuing to sing while carefully plucking out a feather that couldn't be saved.

" _Do or die, you'll never make me, because the world will never take my heart. Go and try, you'll never break me. We want it all, we wanna play this part. I won't explain or say I'm sorry. I'm unashamed, I'm gonna show my scars. Give a cheer for all the broken, listen here, because it's who we are. I'm just a man, I'm not a hero, just a boy who had to sing this song. I'm just a man, I'm not a hero. I don't care!_ "

Louise was horrified when she felt a tear slip down her cheek. Why was this song affecting her so much? Was it because it was pretty much her and her brothers, wrapped up in one tear-jerking song? Their father had trained them from a young age to be 'the saviour of the broken, the beaten and the damned' and now he was gone and they were all alone!

When she finished the song, there was silence. Louise ignored Sam and Dean, who had finished their wing, and focused on preening the last of Castiel's feathers.

"Thank you, Louise," Castiel said softly. "That was beautiful. I see why you love that song."

"'S why I love the whole damn band," Louise muttered. "Their music's one of the only things that keeps me sane."

"Okay, okay," Dean muttered. "I'll stop bitching about your music. Happy?"

Louise gave Dean a small smile and nodded.

"Thanks, Dean."


	36. Chick Flick Moments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise shows her chick side and Ava has a mental breakdown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I hate Croatoan. I won't watch 'The End', even though everybody else loves it, purely because my biggest fear is zombies and zombie apocalypses. I'm usually fine with that stuff (hell, I binged a whole season of TWD) but this was a little…too real for me.
> 
> Also, spoilers from 11x08 ('Just My Imagination') because I frigging loved that episode.

**Chapter 36. Chick Flick Moments**

Their next case had been one long nightmare for Louise and her fear of zombie apocalypses. In River Grove, Oregon, an outbreak of a supernatural disease had spread like wildfire and it was transmitted by contact with even a drop of infected blood. Those infected turned into zombie-like rage bombs who kept the town closed and quarantined and then proceeded to attack everybody to try and turn them.

Thanks to Castiel's enhanced senses, which allowed him to see and smell microscopic differences in infected blood as opposed to normal blood, they found out that the disease was demonic in nature, as they found sulfur in the blood of the infected (though it took four hours for it to manifest after infection). Sam theorised that it could be 'demonic germ warfare' and associated with Croatoan, the name of a demon in their father's journal associated with plague and pestilence (especially since they found 'Croatoan' scratched into a telephone pole). Castiel had attempted to cure one of the turned people but it seemed that being cut off from Heaven had stripped him of his ability to heal and he had had to unwillingly shiv the zombie's ass to stop it from getting to anybody else.

"I'm a poor excuse for an angel," he said darkly when they were all in safety. "I can't even cure a simple demonic disease!"

"At least you tried," Louise said firmly. "'S more than any other winged dick's done. You don't see them busting their asses down here, do you?"

Castiel just glowered and looked away. Louise didn't bother trying to reason with him; ever since falling, he would sometimes get into certain moods where he would bitch about everything he could once do and now couldn't. The best thing to do was just to let him work off some steam rather than trying to reason with him, since this would just sour his mood even more.

To their horror, Sam was infected by someone they had thought was clear and they reluctantly tied him to a chair in preparation for when he turned. But, to their immense surprise, he didn't turn!

"It must be because of your demon blood," Castiel guessed as they left River Grove. "It seems to have given you an immunity to the Croatoan virus."

"Great," Sam said moodily.

"Don't bitch, Sam," Dean snapped. "I bet there're hundreds of people back there who would've killed for that immunity."

-LW-

"You okay?" Louise said to Sam when they stopped by the Roadhouse to get the names of all the kids that Ash could find whose mothers had died from nursery fires when they were six months old.

"I'm fine," Sam shrugged. Louise gave him a sceptical look. "What do you want me to say, Lou? I'm infected with demon blood. And now I'm immune to some demonic virus and we know Azazel's got plans for me and all the other kids who are probably infected too. What does he want with us? And why'd he even do this to us in the first place?"

"We don't know," Louise said patiently. "Hell, even Cas doesn't know and he's an angel. All he knows is that it's gotta be related to you and Lucifer –"

Sam winced at the reminder that he was destined to be the Devil's meat suit. His and Dean's destinies was a sore point that they tried not to dwell on but couldn't help thinking about. All Castiel had been able to tell them was that Lucifer was fated to be released somehow and that Sam was supposed to be his vessel and Dean was supposed to be Michael's in order to defeat Lucifer but, as a common angel, that was all he'd known.

"– even if we don't know why all these other kids have demon blood too. But we'll find out, Sammy, and then we'll waste him and he won't get to carry out his plans."

"With what? The Colt?" Sam said sarcastically.

"Cas' angel blade. Didn't you hear him say that it could kill anything short of an archangel?"

Sam shrugged again. Louise sifted through her mind for something to take his mind off Azazel.

"Do you remember," she said, "when I was eight and I was convinced that I had this imaginary friend? And then when you were nine, you told me that you had one of your own?"

Sam grinned widely.

"Yes." He leaned forward. "Sully and Rainbow. We were lonely because I wanted to go to school and not be a hunter and you didn't know what you were supposed to do with your life since you weren't allowed to hunt and didn't even know if you wanted to. But you also hated school and normalcy because you felt like you'd never fit in and that you never even had a chance because Dad would never let you and Dean would be disappointed with you. And one day they just turned up."

"Yeah," Louise agreed in a faraway voice. "Being eight was confusing as hell. And you were only four, so I couldn't exactly use you for company. But you couldn't see Rainbow, even though I could see her. And we both thought we were going crazy but they could do this stuff like making food appear. Dean thought we were nuts and accused you of 'taking this idolising your big sister thing too far'. I was the only one who believed you and even I thought you were a nut job but I didn't say anything, because that would've made me crazy too."

Sam laughed but then sobered.

"You ever think that they could've been real?" he said. "I mean, I knew that Sully was imaginary but the way he used to interact with me…sometimes it makes me wonder if he was real."

"I dunno, Sam. Real imaginary friends?"

"We hunt mystical creatures for a living," Sam said. "Maybe they could have been real."

"But I couldn't see Sully," Louise argued.

"You were, like, thirteen. You didn't start seeing weird stuff till you were fifteen or so."

"True." Louise was conflicted. If Rainbow had been real then that just made the day she left even more painful, knowing that she had lost a real friend.

"You remember how they left?" she said. "You told Sully to leave because Dad finally let you go on a hunt. And Rainbow stuck around with me until I was eleven or so. I was always careful to not talk to her around you when I was ten 'cause you'd grown up a bit and I didn't want to encourage you to make up your own friend. Man, I was selfish. I wanted an imaginary friend all of my own and I was so upset when you got Sully."

Sam punched Louise softly on the arm, so she punched him back.

"Why did Rainbow end up leaving?" he asked. Louise rested her cheek on her hand and sighed.

"Because she'd helped me," she said. "She helped me see that all I wanted to do in life was help people. That that was my purpose. She encouraged me to do well in school because, well, what if I never did end up hunting? That way, I'd have other ways to help people – like volunteering or becoming a nurse or something. And when I finally realised what my purpose was, she said that she'd done all she could for me and she…left. So I pushed myself in school and I graduated and I could've gotten into college but by then, Dad was letting me hunt."

Sam gave her a sad smile.

"What did Rainbow look like, again?" he said. Louise smiled wistfully, casting her mind back.

"She dressed like Dad," she said. "All cool and leather jacket and jeans. But she had this sparkly rainbow top and her hair was just a colour explosion. She was, like, the coolest thing I could think of when I was eight. Girlishly pretty _and_ dangerously cool."

"Sully wasn't like that," Sam said, his eyes clouding over. "He was simpler. Chubby, striped shirt, rainbow suspenders, blue pants…but I liked it like that. Simpler was more normal and normal was all I wanted."

Sam and Louise sat in silence, immersed in memories of their pasts.

"Hey!" Dean had appeared behind them, making them jump. "You're the one who wanted to come here, Sam. We got something."

Sam and Louise followed Dean over to where Ash was sitting with Ellen and Castiel.

"Four folks around the country," Ash said, dramatically flourishing his piece of paper.

"That's it?" Sam said in surprise. "I thought there would've been more."

"Sam Winchester from Lawrence, Kansas," Ash read off. "Max Miller from Saginaw, Michigan. Andrew Gallagher from Guthrie, Oklahoma. And, uh, Scott Carey from Lafayette, Indiana."

"I don't get it," Louise said. "Wouldn't there be more?"

"Yeah but they wouldn't turn up," Dean said. "Like Ansem Weems, 'cause his adopted mom didn't die."

"What I want to know is just what Azazel is planning with these children," Castiel murmured. "Heaven had no knowledge of those who have been infected except for Sam and those before him. And none of these children have a part to play in the upcoming…event."

"So no divine knowledge or anything?" Dean said. Castiel just stared at him.

"Got an address for Scott?" Sam said.

"Don't think you're gonna like it," Ash said. "The Arbor Hill Cemetery, plot four-eighty-six. Stabbed about a month ago in a parking lot. No suspects or anything."

-LW-

"Why do we have to wait outside?" Louise grumbled, slumping in the backseat of the Impala. Next to her, Castiel was still sitting as straight and rigidly as always. There had been no question of him waiting in the car, so the Winchesters had settled the dispute of who was going inside the mature way: 'rock, paper, scissors'. Dean may have been absolutely crap at the game but the only person who sucked more than he did was Louise, so she had been stuck in the car with Castiel.

"I believe that Sam said that too many people may alarm Mr Carey," Castiel said, looking largely unaffected.

"Yeah, right," Louise snorted. "He just didn't want you to say something and fuck it up."

Castiel stared at her.

"What? You're adorably hilarious and all but you do have a habit of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. And with a grieving parent…well, you don't wanna say the wrong thing."

"I see." Castiel sounded exactly the opposite. They sat in silence, Louise amusing herself by spinning a coin in mid-air. She hadn't had much of a chance to utilise her telekinesis, since she often forgot that she even had it, and she was determined to use it the next time she was in trouble.

' _Yeah, look how awesome I am,'_ she thought. _'I bet Jean Grey didn't forget that she could make things fly in the middle of a battle.'_

"Can I ask you something?" Louise said suddenly.

"You already did."

"Ugh, no. That's a Dean response. Don't turn out like him."

Castiel just stared blankly.

"Never mind. Anyway, do you like Dean?"

"Of course I like Dean. What sort of a question is that?"

"No!" Louise waved her hands in the air. "I mean… _like_ , like. Like…"

"That's a lot of likes."

"Ugh! How do I explain this to you?" Louise paused for a moment. "How do you feel when you're around Dean?"

A small smile appeared on Castiel's face and his wings puffed up slightly.

"I feel happy," he said. "In a way that I have not felt for millennia. I feel very happy around you and even Sam but this…is a different kind of happy. I like it when Dean touches me."

"Yeah, I can see," Louise grinned. "Your wings look like a feathersplosion."

"I don't understand what you mean."

"Never mind. What else?"

"I feel…odd. Whenever I am around Dean, I feel warm, even though I have perfect control over my vessel's temperature. I also feel…how do I explain this?"

"Warm, fuzzy, like butterflies are flying around inside you, always wanting to touch him?" Louise rattled off. Castiel continued to stare at her.

"Yes. How did you –?"

"You've got a crush, Cas," Louise said, still grinning.

"What is a crush?"

"It means you want to be with Dean. You know, dating. Hugging and kissing and all that stuff?'

Castiel seemed to consider this information.

"I…have felt those urges, yes. I thought that they were simply part of being human."

"Nope! I feel like hugging Sam and Dean but I don't wanna kiss them or feel warm and fuzzy around them. It means you've got romantic feelings for Dean."

"No," Castiel said immediately. "I am an angel. I have no romantic attachment to anybody."

Louise raised her eyebrows. Castiel's eyes slid away from her.

"What would you suggest that I do, then?" he said acidly.

"Nothing for now," Louise said.

"But I –"

"Just because _you_ like someone doesn't mean that they feel the same way. And Dean feels the same way –"

"He reciprocates these feelings?" Castiel's wings fluffed up.

"– but I talked to him the other day and he's not ready for this sort of thing."

"I don't understand."

"Look…Dean's been straight all his life and if you ask him about Seattle, he'll deny that it ever happened. Sam and I? We always knew that a small bit of him liked guys, even if he's mainly attracted to chicks. And he's just coming around to the fact that maybe he does like some guys and it's messing with his head. If you make a move now, it'll scare him off. Let him warm up to the idea."

Louise smirked at Castiel's overwhelmed expression.

"Not to mention that crushes don't necessarily mean true love. One day, you could wake up and these feelings are gone. I've had crushes before and trust me, most of mine disappeared after a few days. Hell, one lasted until I realised that the chick was a bitch."

"You also have romantic feelings for the same gender?"

"Yep." Louise let out a dark laugh. "And to top it off, I don't feel like boning anyone. I'm just a huge, broken mess shoved into six feet of Winchester."

"Boning?"

"Fucking. Screwing. Sleeping with. Y'know…having sex."

"Ah." Castiel's face cleared. "I also feel no urge to engage in intercourse with anybody."

"Don't call it that," Louise shuddered. "That just sounds wrong. And sex. Maybe I'm immature but I get all giggly and sick when someone says it. Call it sleeping with someone if you want. And besides, you're an angel. Aren't you lot meant to be chaste and pure?"

"Even if we were, I'm hardly much of an angel anymore," Castiel muttered. Louise grimaced sympathetically and she grabbed Castiel's arm and looped it around her shoulders, snuggling into the surprised angel's side.

"You're more angel than all of them put together, Cas. Angels are meant to watch over humans, right? You're the only one who's doing that."

"Heaven does watch over humanity."

"Yeah but they don't give a shit. Trust me, Cas, you're the best angel we know."

"I'm the only angel you know." But Castiel did look happier, so Louise counted this as a success.

"Just keep acting normal around Dean, okay? See if your crush develops or not. If it does then great! If not…well, that's just what they're like."

The front doors of the Impala opening made Louise jump slightly.

"If you're done playing huggy bear with our angel?" Dean said.

"Up yours, asshole. What'd you find out?"

"We'll tell you once we've found a motel. Leave the poor angel alone, Lou, you're scaring him."

"Louise is not scaring me," Castiel said as Louise made a point of snuggling up next to him. She didn't know why but she just felt…physically drawn to him. And not in the sexy way. "She was merely providing comfort when I was upset."

"Sure, sure," Dean said with a sly grin. Louise met his eyes and, smirking, made an 'okay' hand signal while jerking her head at Castiel. A very pale pink flush stained Dean's cheeks and he turned and focused on pulling away from the kerb, leaving Louise to mentally celebrate her victory over her brother.

-LW-

"My name's Ava," the brunette babbled, pacing around and clutching at her hair. "Ava Wilson. And I know how this all sounds but I am _not_ insane or on drugs! I'm normal and this – this is _crazy_ and never happens!"

Sam, Dean and Louise exchanged looks. Ava had turned up at their motel and frantically told them that Sam was in danger but they hadn't believed her until she'd mentioned having weird dreams.

"Okay, just calm down," Sam said. "I'm Sam Winchester and this is my brother and sister, Dean and Louise, and that's our friend, Castiel. Tell us about these dreams."

Ava nodded, her eyes wide.

"So about a year ago, I started having these, like, headaches and, well…nightmares, I guess. And I didn't think much of it until I dreamed about this guy getting stabbed in a parking lot about a month ago. And then a couple of days later, I found this."

She gave Sam a newspaper clipping. Louise's eyes widened when she saw that the person in the picture was called Scott Carey – the same Scott that Ash had told them had been stabbed! Was Ava another one of the kids that Azazel had infected?

"I saw the guy die!" Ava was still hysterical. "Days before it happened! I don't know why and I don't know how but my dreams are coming true! And last night, I had another one. About you, Sam. You died!"

Louise and Dean immediately shared sharp looks. No way in hell was Sam dying on them!

"That's not happening," Dean said firmly. "How'd you find us?"

"Motel stationery. Sam had some in my dream, so I Googled the place and it was real, so I thought I should warn you."

When Sam revealed that he also had visions and that Ava must have been a psychic like him, Ava just laughed and called him crazy. She also looked at him as though he belonged in an asylum when he asked if her mother was dead and when she said that her mother was alive, Louise grimaced at Castiel. Another one didn't fit the pattern! How were they supposed to find all of Azazel's psychics now?

"Just leave!" Ava pleaded. "Now! Before you get blown up!"

"Good idea," Louise agreed. "Listen to the psychic girl, Sam."

"We can't!" Sam said. "There's something big going on and we have to find out what it is and how we fit into the demon's plans!"

"Demon?" Ava sounded on the verge of a breakdown.

"Demons are real." It was the first time that Castiel had spoken. "And when you were a baby, one of them infected you with demon blood. That's why you have been having these visions. We just don't know how many children were infected or who they are or what Azazel's plans are for them."

Ava let out a screech of laughter.

"Demons? Are you on drugs?"

"No. I am an angel."

Louise jumped when Ava sank to her knees, laughing hysterically in the 'totally snapped and gone loony way', not the 'hilariously funny' way.

"You okay?" Dean said, eyeing Ava.

"Demons! Angels! Psychics! Either I'm dreaming or I've snapped and gone nuts!" Ava shrieked. "I'm just a secretary from Peoria who's supposed to be getting married in eight weeks!" She shoved her engagement ring in Sam's face. "Right now, I should be at home addressing invitations – which, by the way, I'm totally behind on. But I drove out here instead to save your crazy ass and now you wanna stay here and die?"

Before anyone could do anything, Castiel stepped forward and touched Ava's forehead with two fingers. Her eyes rolled back in her head and her knees gave out and she would have fallen to the floor had Dean not reached out and grabbed her.

"I thought it would be best if she calmed down," Castiel said as Dean laid Ava down on one of the beds.

"She's not gonna be a happy camper when she wakes up," Louise remarked. "So, she's one of the psychics. What do we do now?"


	37. Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas totally has a BAMF moment that was totally not ripped off from S5.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> I'm not going to go into detail with too many cases, since they're just stuff that we all know and nothing much changes. And besides, I'm keen to get S2 finished and get into the real meat of the story.
> 
> And yes, this chapter title is a song title. Don't be fooled by its simplicity.

**Chapter 37. Fire**

"We find out what the hell's going on, that's what," Sam said. "Dean and I found pictures of yellow eyes in Scott's closet –"

Louise raised her eyebrows because, well, nice of them to tell her and Castiel that!

"– and Ava had a dream about him? We know that my dreams always had something to do with Azazel or the other special children." Sam turned to Castiel. "Cas, d'you reckon you could – I dunno – sneak into Scott's doctor's office and grab his files for us?"

"You want me to steal?" Castiel said, looking a little disapproving.

"The files aren't gonna help anyone but us now that he's dead," Dean shrugged. "Think of it as investigating."

Castiel still didn't look happy but he disappeared with a flutter.

"You stay here with Crazy Chick," Dean said to Sam. "Lou and I are gonna go get us some food."

When the two of them reached the Impala, the sound of glass shattering made Dean and Louise whirl around. To their horror, the window of their motel room had been blown up!

"Sam!" Louise yelled. Dean grabbed her arm and pointed out a man on a rooftop across the street, holding a sniper rifle. Louise's mouth dropped. No way! Was that…?

"C'mon, Lou!" Dean pulled Louise across the street and they scaled a building behind the shooter as fast as they could, Louise hoping that it wasn't the son of a bitch she thought it was. But it was.

"Gordon!" Dean dived at Gordon Walker before he could take another shot, threatening to kill him for trying to shoot Sam, but Gordon managed to overpower him and smash him in the face with his rifle. Louise lunged and kicked Gordon's rifle away but Gordon kicked her in the stomach, sending her flying a few feet. She stood up and whirled around, pulling her gun out of the waistband of her slacks in one smooth motion.

"Don't even think about it, Louise." Louise froze when Gordon thrust an unconscious Dean in front of him as a hostage, his arm around Dean's throat. "You wouldn't want Swiss cheese for a cousin, would you?"

"Why does it always come to this?" Louise growled. "Just once, can a bad guy _not_ use my brothers against me?"

"You're just weak, Louise," Gordon said. "Now, come with me if you want your cousin to live."

"He's. My. Brother!" Louise hissed. "I'm so sick of telling everyone this! And I literally just called him my brother two seconds ago!"

"Whatever you say, Louise," Gordon said patronisingly. "Now, I'll be taking that gun if you don't mind."

Louise reluctantly handed over her gun and then followed Gordon down to the ground and over to his car. Gordon tied Dean's hands behind his back and threw him into the back of the car, buckling him in (Louise knew that it would look a hell of a lot less suspicious at a glance if Dean looked like he was sleeping in his seat rather than lying unconscious across the whole back seat) and then he gestured for Louise to turn around so that he could do the same. Louise just raised her eyebrows and crossed her arms.

"We can play that game if you want to." Gordon pointed Louise's gun at Dean, who was starting to stir. Louise contemplated using her powers to knock the gun out of Gordon's hand now that Dean wasn't being used as a shield but when Gordon stepped closer to Dean and pressed the gun against his temple, she knew then and there that she wouldn't risk her brother's life.

"Fine," Louise spat, turning around. Gordon pulled her hands behind her back and roughly tied them together and then he pushed her into the front seat of the car, belting her in, before walking around to the driver's seat.

"We're going for a little drive, Louise," he said. "You might want to get some rest."

She knew what was coming but that didn't make it hurt any less when the gun smashed into her head. Colours burst before her eyes and Louise blinked rapidly, before another hit made everything go black.

-LW-

When Louise came to, the first thing she did was groan through her pounding head and churning stomach.

"You okay, Lou?" Dean said straight away. Louise nodded, wincing when this action nearly made her puke.

"Good," Gordon said softly. "You're awake." He cocked the gun in his hand and placed it right under Dean's chin, making Louise gulp; one shot and Dean's brains would be everywhere! "Call your angel, Louise."

"W-What?" Louise spluttered. Gordon _wanted_ her to call Castiel? Why? And how did he know that Castiel was an angel?

"You heard me."

Wondering just what the hell was going on, Louise closed her eyes and mumbled, "Cas? Can you hear me? Dean and I are kinda in a bit of trouble and we could use your help on this one."

There was silence for a moment. Then, with a fluttering sound, Castiel appeared. His eyes swept over Dean and Louise, who were bound to chairs, and then Gordon. His face darkened.

"I don't know who you are but you will not get away with harming Dean and Louise," Castiel threatened. He advanced on Gordon but, calm as ever, Gordon flicked a lighter open and dropped it. A ring of fire started to burn around Castiel, who whirled around and stared at it in shock.

"What the hell?" Dean burst out.

"Holy fire," Gordon said in satisfaction. "Little black-eyed birdy told me that you had an angel on your shoulder. Didn't need him coming after my ass, so I made a special trip for that stuff. Go on, Wings. Step out of the fire."

Castiel levelled Gordon with such a terrifying look that Louise shivered and recoiled.

"I can't," Castiel finally spat. "If an angel crosses holy fire, they will die."

Gordon nodded.

"Good. Now that you're secure, what do you say we have a little chat?"

-LW-

"Dean and Louise should've been back by now," Sam said worriedly. Next to him, Ava was eyeing the bullet that had shattered their window with a mixture of terror and curiosity. "And where's Cas? He just up and left!"

He was cut off by the sound of his phone ringing. He immediately picked it up.

"Dean!" he exclaimed. "Where the hell are you, man?"

"Got side-tracked," Dean replied. Sam frowned. That wasn't like Dean! "This place is a real funky town, isn't it?"

Sam froze. Dean was in trouble! Was Louise with him? And was it the same person that had tried to shoot him?

"You're right about that," Sam finally said. "Listen, there's someone after me now. They tried to nail me with a rifle!"

"What? Who?" Dean exclaimed, though his voice was off.

"I dunno but we need to find out. Where are you?"

"5637 Monroe Street. Lou's with me and Cas decided to drop in. How about you meet us here?"

"Yeah." Sam hung up and groaned. "Dammit!"

"What's wrong?" Ava said, far calmer than earlier.

"Dean and Lou. And Cas. They're in trouble."

"How do you know?"

"Dean gave me a code word. Funky town. Means someone's got a gun on him – and Lou, if she's with him. And I don't know how they trapped Cas but it can't be good. Come on!"

-LW-

"You've gotta be kidding me," Louise said in disbelief once Gordon had revealed that a demon had let slip about Sam's powers and as a result, he was hunting down all the special children to prevent them from turning evil and forming an army for Hell. She once again tried to focus on unravelling her bonds but every time she tried, Gordon looked in her direction and she was forced to stop. She'd never be able to get herself untied quick enough to stop him from shooting Dean – or running Castiel through with his angel blade!

"I rarely kid. Oh, and Dean? I did warn you that I'd shoot your cousin if you tried to let on to Sam that you were in trouble. And I'm sure you found some way of telling him. You really think I'm that stupid?"

He cocked Louise's shotgun and shot her straight in the left thigh.

"You son of a bitch!" Dean roared as Castiel started towards them but halted at the line of fire and Louise cried out and tried to grab her bleeding leg. She bit her lip so hard that it bled as she attempted to hold back her tears. There was no way in hell she was going to show weakness in front of Gordon! The psychopath in question just stood up and slapped Dean across the face.

"That's my momma you're talking about, Dean."

"There's no way Sam's gonna just walk through that door and let you gun him down!" Louise forced out, trying desperately to ignore the pain in her leg.

"I know," Gordon said. "I also know that Sammy's gonna take a look around when he gets here and see me covering the front door. So he's gonna go the back way and hit the tripwire. Then –" Gordon took a grenade out of his bag, "– boom."

"As if Sam'll fall for a frigging trip wire," Dean scoffed.

"Which is why I have a second one. Look, I'm really sorry. I wish I didn't have to do this. But it'll be quick, I promise. Now, I'm going to set this up. Don't go anywhere."

Gordon went to set up the tripwire, while Louise leaned against her chair and groaned softly.

"You okay, Lou?" Dean said. "That son of a bitch! Hurry up and untie us, Jean Grey!"

"I – I can't," Louise panted. "I can't concentrate through – through my frigging leg! And by the time I get this fucking bullet out, he'll be back."

"Just rip it out," Dean said.

"Yeah and damage my leg even more?" Louise laughed painfully. "If I don't get it out right then I'll probably kill my whole leg and I don't trust my powers at the moment. How you holding up, Cas?"

"Better than you," Castiel replied, pacing around in his circle and searching for a way out. "I cannot affect my surroundings in here or else I could have smothered the flames or at least freed you."

"So, what, holy fire's like a Devil's Trap for winged dicks?" Dean said. Castiel gave a short, stiff nod.

"I'm a failure," he muttered. "I allowed myself to get trapped and now I am useless."

"You sounded surprised," Louise reasoned. "This holy fire can't be too common, right? So you couldn't have expected it!"

"Don't!" Castiel was suddenly yelling, which made Louise blink because he never yelled. "Don't try and make excuses for me, Louise! Time after time, I have failed and relied on you and Dean and Sam to help me when I should be helping you! That is the whole reason I fell!"

He clutched at his hair. The painfully human gesture made Louise's heart ache.

"And look at me. A poor, pathetic excuse for an angel, with waning powers and a laughable habit of relying on three humans to help me out of situations or fix everything when I cannot. I should have stayed in Heaven."

"What, and let those sons of bitches fuck you up like they were doing?" Dean said disbelievingly. Castiel laughed darkly.

"At least I would not be a useless failure. Naomi told me that I had a habit of never doing what I was told and making a huge mess out of everything. She was right! Look at me, Dean! Once again, I have failed and now you and Louise are in trouble and Sam is in imminent danger of dying! And I cannot resurrect him or even heal Louise because I have no connection to Heaven!"

Louise's mouth was open. How long had Castiel been bottling this stuff up?

"Shut up, Cas!" Dean snapped. "Just shut up!"

Castiel fell silent, glowering at Dean. His wings were spread out in a clear show of anger, so it seemed that holy fire couldn't affect them when they were on another plane of existence.

"You're not a failure, okay? You're just getting used to living like us humans. And you can't stop everything! We ever tell you about Chicago? Louise sensed the demons and knew they were coming and guess what? They still got the drop on us!"

Louise didn't know whether he was trying to make Castiel or her feel better.

"And then at Bobby's, when that yellow-eyed son of a bitch was in me! Louise could tell instantly! But shit still happened and people still died! Just 'cause you've got powers doesn't mean you can stop all the bad crap from happening!"

Castiel was staring at Dean with wide eyes.

"Don't you _ever_ say that you'd be better off being tortured upstairs! Got it? 'Cause you're our friend, Cas, and we need you with us! How d'you think we'd feel if we knew you were being tortured and forced to forget all about us? Dammit!"

He tried to hit or kick something but, as his arms and legs were bound to his chair, he couldn't do anything but thrash around angrily. All Louise wanted to do was hug her best friend but she couldn't, since she was tied up and her leg was sending pulses of agony shooting through her with every heartbeat!

"We don't keep you around for your mojo, Cas," Dean said firmly, breathing heavily. "Just like I don't keep Lou around for her powers, or Sam for his nerdy brains. We keep you around 'cause you're our friend, dammit! We don't care if you're totally human and the worst shot in the world and no good at hunting! You're our _friend_!"

Louise prayed that Castiel got the message through his thick head. Her prayer seemed to be answered when Castiel's shoulders slumped and he favoured Dean with a wan little smile.

"Thank you, Dean," he mumbled. Dean shrugged uncomfortably.

"'S cool. I do the same to Sammy and Lou when they start bitching."

Louise shot Dean a bitchface.

"Showtime. He's here." Gordon was back and Louise sent him the biggest death glare she could muster.

"Come on, man!" Dean said. "Sammy's not a monster! He feels guilty even surfing for porn!"

"One day he will be," Gordon solemnly.

"No," Castiel said firmly. "Sam Winchester will not become a monster. He is too good for that and we will not allow it."

Gordon shook his head.

"I can't believe it. Even the angel's junkless. Look, let's say that you were cruising around in your car and you had…Hitler riding shotgun. Back before he turned into a murderer. But you knew what he was going to turn into someday. You'd take him out right away, wouldn't you?"

"That's not Sam!" Dean said angrily.

"And no, we wouldn't," Louise added. "You don't kill someone just because of what they might do someday! If you knew they were going to turn into a killer, you'd try and lead them away from that path and take them out only if they did kill people!"

"I'm sorry, you two," Gordon said. "I really am. You can't see that it's Sam's destiny and I have to do this." He pulled a strip of cloth out of his bag. "But here's the thing." He roughly gagged Dean and then did the same to Louise with another piece of cloth. "If it came down to it, your dad would have had the balls to do the right thing, even if it would wreck him. You're telling me that neither of you are even half the person he was?"

While Dean and Louise glared daggers at Gordon, the man pulled out another length of rope and cloth and crossed over to Castiel.

"Arms behind your back, Wings."

Louise growled furiously through her gag. She knew that while this was also to prevent Castiel from warning Sam, it was also a power play; Gordon could just as easily knock Castiel out but by tying him up and leaving him defenceless, it asserted dominance over the angel.

To her glee, Castiel didn't take it lying down. He willingly complied and turned around with his hands behind his back but as soon as Gordon reached over the flames to tie him up, it was game over. Castiel whirled back around, grabbed Gordon by the arm and yanked. The man went down, screaming as he fell into the fire, and Castiel used him as a bridge to step out of the circle, snatch up his angel blade and bury the silvery weapon in Gordon's back. With one last gurgling yell, Gordon fell silent and went still.

"Nobody touches a hair on Sam, Dean or Louise's heads and gets away with it," Castiel snarled at Gordon's corpse. He turned around to face a wide-eyed Dean and Louise and crossed over stiffly to free them.

"Holy crap," Louise whispered when Castiel pulled the gag out of her mouth. "Cas, that was…"

"Badass!" Dean supplied when his mouth was free. "Dude, who knew you had that in you?"

Castiel looked pleased with himself as he quickly untied Dean's wrists. While Dean bent down to free his legs, Castiel turned and undid Louise's bonds.

"I apologise that I can't heal your leg," he said but Louise brushed it off.

"Don't sweat, Cas. I've had worse."

As Castiel helped her up, one of the worst sounds in the world reached her ears: the sound of an explosion. She whirled around, nearly falling when she put pressure on her leg, and saw Dean staring in horror at the smoking doorway.

"Sammy!" Dean yelled. A second explosion answered him and Louise, feeling her legs about to give out under her, grabbed Castiel around the neck to steady herself.

"Sam!" she wailed.

There was silence for a moment in which nobody dared to move.

"He's alive," Castiel declared. Dean and Louise looked at him sharply.

"What?" they exclaimed.

"He's right," a familiar voice said. Dean and Louise's heads whipped around to see Sam standing in the doorway, grinning wearily.

"Sammy!" Dean pulled Sam into a brief, manly hug, slapping him on the back. "Don't do that again!"

Sam shrugged. His eyes widened when he caught sight of the burning, bloody corpse of Gordon behind them.

"Oh," Louise said when she noticed his line of sight. "Cas had a BAMF moment."

"A what?" Castiel frowned.

"Means you were badass." Louise shifted slightly and ended up leaning on her injured leg, which made her legs buckle underneath her in a flash of pain. Castiel caught her around the waist and pulled her back up. "Oh, come on! I'm not some damsel in distress!"

"No," Castiel agreed. "You are an injured human who requires support until your leg has been tended to."

"So let's get outta here," Sam said, his eyes flicking to the door nervously. "I may have called the cops so that we wouldn't have to kill Gordon but seeing as he's already dead…"

"Whoops," Louise laughed, seeing colours burst behind her eyes. When black started to appear at the edges of her vision, she groaned. "Great. I think I'm gonna black out. Fan-freaking-tastic."

"I think you should carry her, Cas," Dean said, looking far too smug for his own good. "Make sure she doesn't hurt herself any more."

"I agree." Louise exhaled sharply when Castiel bent down, swept her legs out from under her and supported her back with his other arm. Her grip around his neck automatically tightened.

"I'm injured! Not dead!" Louise protested. "You did that on purpose, you asshole!"

Dean smirked and winked before turning around and leaving with Sam. Louise just groaned and closed her eyes, trying to cling to the last shreds of dignity that hadn't disappeared when the angel had decided to carry her like a delicate little female.

"I hate you, Dean!"


	38. Everybody's Fool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise's side of the family sucks. So does her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.

**Chapter 38. Everybody's Fool**

"It's a trickster," Castiel announced. Sam, Dean and Louise blinked and stared at him.

"What makes you say that?" Dean finally said.

"It's rather obvious. Tricksters are demigods that cause chaos wherever they go. There are plenty in mythology: Loki, Anansi, Mercury…"

"But how do you know it's a trickster?" Louise said.

"Tricksters target the high and mighty and teach them a lesson. They often have a very deadly sense of humour, depending on who they are targeting."

"Just desserts," Sam said.

"Yes. And you three were the biggest clue as to what it was. This trickster must have known that we were on its tail and played some harmless pranks on you to create discord and pit you against each other, rendering you useless."

Louise groaned, remembering all of the trickster's tricks against them. Sam's laptop had magically frozen on a porn site, which immediately made him blame Dean for using it, and then it had gone missing. Then, after Sam threatened to screw with the Impala – lo and behold! The car's tyres went flat and Sam's money clip had been found next to it. This had resulted in a massive fight of epic proportions that had culminated in Louise and Castiel escaping the room to get away from Sam and Dean's yelling. While Sam and Dean were at each other's throats, Louise was constantly trying to get them to calm down, leaving her frazzled and unable to concentrate on anything else.

"So what do tricksters look like?" she asked.

"They can look like many things. But their most common form is human."

"And who do we know who's been at ground zero the whole time?" Dean said.

"The janitor!" Sam exclaimed.

"The janitor that Cas and I never met because you made us stay behind so that we didn't look suspicious for having four people out there?" Louise said sceptically.

"Yeah, him!"

"Okay then. Lesson learned: it's always the janitor."

-LW-

"Sorry, I'm dragging a little ass today," the janitor apologised to Sam, Dean, Louise and Castiel as they followed him up the staircase. "Lots of sex, if you catch my drift."

Louise and Castiel looked at each other out of the corner of their eyes, trying desperately not to stare at the janitor. Because he wasn't a trickster.

He was an angel.

' _Why the hell's an angel pretending to be a trickster pretending to be a janitor?'_ Louise thought. _'Aren't they all flapping around upstairs?'_

"We won't be long," Dean said, giving Sam a signal. "We just need to check a couple of offices on three. And we brought these two for a second opinion."

Louise looked at Castiel, who nodded.

"I don't think we're gonna need that equipment," she announced. Sam and Dean frowned at her.

"What d'you mean?" Dean said.

"Because it's not what we thought it was," Louise said carefully, trying not to look at the angel (who, she noticed, stared at Castiel when nobody was looking at him). "My partner and I were just talking. We think it's something way stronger, so we're gonna need different equipment."

Sam and Dean stiffened. The angel raised his eyebrows.

"More powerful than a few burnt fuses?" he said.

"Yep," Louise said. "It's more Cas' kind of thing than ours." If this was an angel then he could already see Castiel, so there was no point in beating around the bush. "He's a specialist, so I'd think he knows what he's on about."

Out of the corner of her eye, Louise saw the exact moment that Sam and Dean caught on. She also noticed the exact moment that the angel realised that he was busted.

"Well." Their surroundings melted away, replaced with the college's auditorium. "Guess the game's up, right?"

"Who are you?" Sam demanded. When Castiel opened his mouth, the angel snapped his fingers and Castiel was suddenly gagged with duct tape.

"Hey!" Louise said. "What gives?"

"I get how Cassie here could see who I am," the angel said, wagging a finger at a wide-eyed Castiel. When Castiel took a step forward, the angel telekinetically hurled him into one of the theatre seats and snapped his fingers to tie Castiel up tightly. Louise tried to run and untie him but the angel snapped his fingers again and Louise was thrown into the seat next to Castiel.

"Hey! Leave her alone!" Dean growled. The angel froze Sam and Dean to the spot easily.

"But how could you know, sweetcheeks?" he continued to Louise. "You're not an angel and no psychic is strong enough to see what we are without being burnt out. And even if you were psychic, you couldn't have sensed me because angels haven't been down here in so long that I doubt anybody even remembers what we feel like."

His golden wings weren't in a threatening position, which put Louise slightly at ease. Still, they weren't in a friendly stance either. Louise was certain that she should know who this angel was…something was niggling at her mind…

"Oh." The angel followed Louise's gaze to his wings and took a step back from her, his eyebrows raised. "Well. Someone's been a naughty angel, haven't they? Which one?"

Louise didn't want to tell the angel anything about herself but she didn't think that something like this really mattered. She'd save her resistance for another question.

"Araqiel. Never met him, never want to."

"He always was a douchebag," the angel said mock-nostalgically. "You shouldn't be alive."

"And you shouldn't say stuff like that," Louise said bitchily. "So not good for my self-esteem."

The angel chuckled.

"But what I don't get is why Cassie here is running around with a nephil when he should have smote the crap out of you. Not to mention that he's falling! Baby bro, have you _seen_ your wings?"

Castiel glowered at the angel over his gag. Louise grimaced; over the past few months since starting to fall, Castiel's wings had started to grow duller and duller and now he was starting to lose feathers. Louise didn't think it would be long before he was rendered flightless and the look of utter hopelessness on his face at times made her heart break. It was all their fault that he was falling!

Wait. Wings. Castiel had mentioned an archangel having wings the colour of sunsets…

"Gabriel!" she burst out. The angel went rigid. "You're Gabriel!"

"Go and shout it out for the world to hear!" the angel – Gabriel – snapped. "And better make sure that Heaven hears you too! I mean, it's not like I'm pretending to be a trickster for any particular reason!"

"So why _are_ you posing as a trickster?" Sam said. Gabriel sighed and snapped his fingers, sending Sam and Dean staggering into seats and releasing Castiel from his physical bonds but still keeping him pinned.

"This all starts long ago, in a galaxy far, far away –"

"Quit quoting Star Wars," Louise said. Gabriel rolled his eyes.

"Sheesh! Bossy much? Fine, I'll give you the Cliffnotes version. My two oldest brothers were fighting. Raphie was on Mikey's side. Little Sari was trying to stay the hell out of everyone's business – not that that helped 'em in the end, not after what they did. And me? I had to put up with my brothers fighting time after time after time!"

"Preaching to the choir," Louise muttered. Sam and Dean glared at her. "What?"

"What you lot call the Apocalypse – Judgement Day, the end of times, whatever – that was Sunday dinner to us angels! And then after all the shit went down and Luci was locked away, I left. I couldn't take it!"

"So you ran away rather than facing your problems," Dean said. Gabriel whirled on him and Louise shrank back when his massive golden wings arced out in a threatening, dominating pose. Next to her, she noticed Castiel's wings immediately shrink in a submissive gesture.

"I had to sit back and watch my brothers try and kill each other!" Gabriel yelled. "And then I had to put up with little Sariel's whining because blah, blah, blah, ne fucked up and now all the angels hated nem and Gabriel, you're the big brother so do something about it!"

Sam and Dean looked a little confused at Gabriel's use of different pronouns. Louise resolved to explain when they got out of this. She blinked when Gabriel's wings suddenly dropped back into a neutral stance.

"Look, I really have nothing against you yahoos. And hey, I'll even turn a blind eye to the fact that this little lady shouldn't be alive and that Cassie's playing rogue with a nephil."

"I was ordered to spare her by Michael nemself," Castiel growled. "And when I was imprisoned and tortured by Naomi, Sariel saved me and warned me that I would fall if I chose freedom. My duty now is to assist Sam, Dean and Louise because they are my friends."

His dull black wings had puffed up angrily a little. Gabriel cocked his head curiously.

"Wow. Boy, do they have you on a leash, baby bro."

Castiel's wings expanded even further.

"They do not 'have me on a leash'. I chose to help them. They are the first beings to show me kindness and acceptance rather than indifference in millennia."

Gabriel whistled.

"Fine. Okay. Whatever you say, Cassie. Now listen up, you lot. Here's the deal I'm offering. You shut your mouths about who I am and let me move on. Or else I smite my little niece here."

Louise grimaced when she remembered that technically, Gabriel and Castiel were her uncles. She saw that Sam and Dean were very reluctant to let this archangel just walk away but they knew that they were backed into a corner; Castiel's blade wouldn't work on an archangel and he could just smite her before they even lifted a finger.

"Fine," Dean spat. "Get the hell out of here."

Gabriel held a finger up.

"Oh and you better treat my baby brother well. Falling's not something to be taken lightly and the fact that he's so loyal to you Three Stooges is the only reason I'm even doing this in the first place. Don't kick him to the kerb when his mojo gives out or treat him like a piece of crap or I'll bring down a rain of holy wrath on you. Got it?"

Gabriel wiggled his eyebrows before they could answer and extended his wings. He vanished with a rustling sound and as soon as he was gone, Sam, Dean, Louise and Castiel found that they were free to move from their seats.

"Your side of the family sucks," was the first thing Dean said to Castiel and Louise.

"Don't remind me," Louise said darkly.

-LW-

" _Ugh, that's just nasty!" Dean said when they peeled back the bloody blanket to reveal the extremely mangled remains._

" _Yeah," Sam agreed in a muffled voice, covering his mouth and nose._

" _Looks to me like something was hungry," Louise said, trying not to hyperventilate. Because this looked just like a hellhound attack and she couldn't think about that and remember the time she'd died! "They identify him yet?"_

" _A research scientist at the college," Sam replied. "Guess where his office was? Crawford Hall, same as the professor."_

" _And right where Curtis had his close encounter," Dean said. "Grab that for me, would ya?" Louise slid a magnifying light over but Castiel stepped up and plucked something out of the man's mess of remains. Louise tried not to hurl._

" _It appears to be an alligator scale," he announced._

" _Alligator in the sewer? Come on!" Dean scoffed._

" _Dean, it's a classic urban legend," Sam said. "I mean, it's not real but neither are aliens…"_

_The sound of barking suddenly filled the air. Louise whirled around, her heart pounding, but nothing was there._

" _You hear that?" she said in a hushed voice. Nobody answered her and when Louise turned back, she saw that Sam, Dean and Castiel had disappeared and she was all on her own. "Guys? Where'd you go?"_

_In answer, the growling started up again but far louder. Louise whimpered and turned, backing up against the wall._

" _What's going on? Go away!" she shouted. There was a loud howl and then the door burst open and a huge, dark dog with hellfire for eyes prowled into the room. Its flaming eyes were fixed on Louise, who was suddenly unable to move._

" _HELP!" she screamed. The dog let out another howl and leapt straight at her. Louise dodged and whirled around to face the door but it was gone! Where was the door? Now she was trapped with the hellhound!_

" _SOMEBODY HELP ME!"_

_But nobody was going to help her. Louise was rooted to the spot as the dog pounced on her and then brilliant, white-hot agony burst in her leg and side. Louise shrieked and screamed as blood poured out of her wounds in streams, nearly fainting when she looked down and saw her organs glistening out of her abdomen, and then the dog's paw raked across her throat and she was coughing and choking on blood and oh, God, she couldn't breathe –_

"NO!" Louise bolted upright in bed, panting and shaking and sweating. Where was the hellhound? What was going on?

"Are you okay?" Louise felt Castiel sit down on the bed next to her, his glowing white form making him stand out in the dark room.

"C-Cas! You're here! But you were gone!" Louise said hysterically.

"I have been here since you fell asleep, Louise."

Louise shook her head disbelievingly and ripped her covers away, running her hands over her body. Nothing. Not even a scar!

"But – the hellhound –" she whispered. "It was there – we were looking at the alligator guy – then you were gone – and then the hellhound came – oh, God! I was dying again!"

"It was a nightmare." Louise latched onto that low, gravelly, calm voice for comfort and closed her eyes, trying to anchor herself. "You were dreaming, Louise."

Louise felt her shoulders begin to shake and then, to her shame, tears began to slip down her cheeks. She curled up into a ball, still sitting, and wrapped her arms around herself tightly as she began to rock back and forth, her face buried in her knees.

"I had it under control!" she said in a muffled, choked voice. "I was f-fine! Then we s-saw that alligator guy…why am I s-so weak? I was over it!"

She felt Castiel shift closer and then stiffened when his arms encircled her rigidly and awkwardly.

"Is this appropriate for comforting someone?" he said. Louise let out a watery laugh.

"Yeah." She looked up and then, before she knew what she was doing, she was leaning into Castiel's side and sobbing quietly.

"You were repressing your memories of that event, Louise," Castiel said. "Something was bound to trigger them. I may not know much about humans but I do know that you must express trauma in some way."

Louise just cried harder, clutching at the lapels of Castiel's trench coat. When she finally managed to bring her sobs under control, she slumped against the angel, suddenly feeling weak and ashamed.

"'M sorry," she mumbled. "Being a baby. Shouldn't h've to put up w'th that."

"No. You were finally allowing yourself to express your trauma from that event. You should not feel ashamed, Louise. And I do not mind comforting you and helping you in any way that I can."

Louise chuckled darkly.

"Thanks, Cas," she murmured. She felt herself begin to drift off again but this time, she felt secure in the knowledge that her best friend was there, holding her and keeping her safe. The last thing she saw before her eyes closed were Castiel's dark wings, wrapping around them both and filling her with a sense of peace and security.


	39. Cemetery Drive

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise has to deal with her own messed-up mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> This chapter was very painful to write because nothing of import happened in terms of plot but I wanted to cover Louise's mental state and not just skip over and summarise it. I found it a bit scary how quickly Sam seemed to get over being dead and not only did Louise die, it was a very painful death.
> 
> And I realise that Madison's death has far less impact in this story but that's because they figured it out sooner, rather than waiting until Sam was attached before realising what she was. Hey, not everything can be the same!

**Chapter 39. Cemetery Drive**

"This is it." The woman – Molly McNamara, who happened to be one of the two ghosts that the four of them were hunting and who didn't even know she was dead – gestured around the inside of a cabin. "This is where I saw him."

"Must've been his hunting cabin," Dean said. Louise's breath caught when she caught sight of a rack of sharp weapons hanging beside a bloodstained table and she quickly looked down at her stomach and pressed a shaky hand to it to make sure that she wasn't being torn apart by hellhounds or Azazel, or that she hadn't used those tools on anybody. She quickly closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths and opened them slowly, trying not to let on to her brothers or Castiel about what was going through her mind.

"…dig up the corpse and salt and burn it," Dean was saying.

"Naturally," Molly agreed, looking so calm that Louise knew that she was close to a breakdown.

"Can't you do anything?" Louise murmured to Castiel.

"I am disconnected from Heaven. I cannot send any souls on, especially not one that is tied to another spirit rather than any earthly remains."

Louise grimaced at that.

"After Greely died, his wife claimed the body," Sam said. "And that was the last anyone saw of her. So my guess is that she brought him back here. But they had a thousand acres, so he could be buried anywhere."

"This is really what you guys do? You're like Ghostbusters?" Molly said in disbelief. Louise exchanged a look with Sam, remembering Richardson and the Ghostfacers, and Sam grinned. Louise, however, couldn't find the energy to crack a smile back and she was glad when Dean kicked all of their asses to get moving and find Greely's corpse before sunrise.

"Help!" Molly suddenly screamed. Louise whirled around, thoughts of demons and hellhounds whizzing through her mind, but it was just Greely that had grabbed Molly and Dean easily dispelled him with a shot of rock salt.

"You alright?" Sam said.

"What has that son of a bitch done with my husband?" Molly yelled.

"Calm down," Castiel said, taking a step towards her. It was one of the few times he'd spoken and Louise suspected that Molly only shut up out of shock.

After exiting the cabin, the group of five happened upon a creepy old house a short distance away. With no headstone to tell them where Greely was buried, they decided to go inside and try to find some clues.

"Don't suppose you can sniff his remains out?" Louise said to Castiel. The fallen angel gave her such a blank look that Louise actually found herself muttering an apology and following Sam up the stairs, while Dean and Castiel stayed downstairs to try and find Greely's corpse.

"Look." Molly peered down at a scrapbook and Sam went to join her. "It's Greely and his wife. A love letter that he wrote to her. It's…beautiful. How can a guy like this turn into a monster?"

Sam started a little emotional speech about how ghosts were just like wounded animals but Louise wasn't listening. Instead, she was staring curiously at a wall that looked a little suspicious and, deciding to investigate, held out her hand to push the cabinet aside and reveal a small, hidden door. Trying the handle, she found that it was locked from the inside and so she just closed her eyes, laid a palm on the door and focused on wiggling the internal mechanisms around until the lock clicked. She was not in the mood to go kicking things down!

"Fantastic," she muttered when she saw that she had to paw her way through a thick wall of cobwebs. Once she had swiped away the last of the webs, she looked up to see the rotting corpse of a woman hanging by her neck from the ceiling. So Louise did the only thing she could do.

She screamed.

"What? What is it?" Sam was immediately by Louise's side as she stumbled out of the room, breathing in quick, shallow breaths.

"N-Nothing." Louise looked away when Dean crashed into the room with Castiel, not wanting to appear weak in front of her big brother. "Just a corpse…wasn't expecting it…"

"Since when do corpses scare my tough baby sister?" Dean teased, pushing past her to go inside the room. Louise winced. Yeah, she wasn't going to be telling anyone about her nightmares and mini panic moments if that was the reaction she was going to get.

With some help, Dean managed to extract Mrs Greely's corpse and then they hauled it outside to dig a grave for it.

"So…what happens if you put a ghost to rest?" Molly said.

"Lady, that answer is way beyond our pay grade," Dean responded, still digging.

"You hunt these things but you don't know what happens to them?"

"They never come back. That's all that matters."

"They move on," Castiel said. "Putting them to rest severs all ties to this plane and they can progress to where they would have gone had they originally moved on. Becoming vengeful does not affect their passage to Heaven if that was where they would have gone when they died. And if they were destined for Hell then they go to Hell."

Everybody stared at him.

"Listen to him." Dean jerked his thumb at Castiel. "He's the expert in this stuff."

-LW-

Despite their best efforts, Greely managed to get his hands on Molly and so the other four redoubled their efforts to find the poor ghost so that they could help her move on. It all came down to an old photograph of the cabin they'd found, which was missing a tree that had been there when they'd stumbled upon it hours ago.

"Of course!" Sam said. "It's an old country custom! Planting a tree as a grave marker!"

Despite his slowly failing wings, Castiel took them to get shovels and then to the cabin, where they could hear Molly's screams of pain. Louise had barely any time to wonder how a spirit could hurt another spirit like that before she and Sam were digging up Greely's bones and Dean and Castiel were trying to distract Greely long enough for his bones to be burned.

Once Greely was gone, poor Molly learned the hard truth: that her husband had survived the crash but she was also a spirit, tied to the highway by Greely's angry ghost and forced to enact out a chase scene every year, causing crashes when people tried to avoid hitting them. Louise's heart ached for the dead woman, who was sitting on the steps of her long-moved-on husband's house with her head down.

"Why didn't you tell me when you first saw me?" she demanded.

"You wouldn't have believed us," Louise said sympathetically.

"David –"

We brought you here so you could move on," Sam said.

"But I have to tell him –"

"That you love him? That you're sorry? He already knows that, Molly. If you want to go in there, we won't stop you."

"But you'll scar him for life," Louise said. "This is your unfinished business. You have to let go and once you do that…we think you'll move on."

It took a little more convincing but Molly finally stood up, looked up at the sky with a peaceful expression and began to glow, dissipating after a moment into light.

"Why can't all ghosts be like that?" Dean said. Louise just shrugged.

-LW-

Next was a werewolf case in San Francisco, where a woman called Madison had been attacked a little while ago by a werewolf and was now attacking anyone she subconsciously perceived as a threat. Unable to cure her, they had been forced to wait until she turned – not wanting to face her when she was a terrified human – and then Castiel had stabbed her with his angel blade, killing her instantly.

"It's not fair," Sam said mournfully as they left San Francisco. "So many innocent people are having their lives taken away because of monsters!"

Louise didn't answer, instead trying not to descend into a full-blown panic attack at the memory of dog-like Madison kneeling over her ex-boyfriend's bloody, mangled corpse.

' _Just breathe, Lou!'_ she told herself. _'Breathe! You can't let Sam and Dean and Cas know how weak you are!'_

But images of Kurt, his heart ripped out of his gaping chest cavity, swam through her mind and Louise involuntarily let out a small whimper.

"You alright, Lou?" Dean said immediately.

"Y-Yeah," Louise said quickly. "I'm fine, Dean."

Dean didn't look like he believed her, so Louise just smiled shakily until he finally refocused on the road. Noticing the look that Castiel was giving her, Louise quickly shoved her iPod earphones in and turned 'Cemetery Drive' up loud.

-LW-

Their next case was in Los Angeles, where someone had apparently died on set. Pretending to be P.A.s (and boy, had that been a wild ride for pop culture-oblivious Castiel), they found that the death was fake and simply an attempt to promote interest in the movie. But then people started dying for real and they managed to figure out that the original script writer, Walter Dixon, was summoning ghosts to kill these people for ruining his script, which had contained loads of authentic rituals and information, as the current writer had completely hacked the original script to bits.

"I don't understand," Castiel said when they had vanquished the spirits. "Why do humans meddle with forces that are beyond their understanding?"

"Nobody thinks that this crap is real, Cas." Dean clapped Castiel on the shoulder and Louise smiled when his wings – which were losing feathers and looking even worse – fluffed up as they always did when Dean touched him. Louise was convinced that this was more than a crush but she bit her tongue. For one, she was serious when she said that she didn't play matchmaker. And for another, it had still only been seven months since they had met Castiel. That still wasn't nearly enough time for it to be anything serious.

To top everything off, Dean also got to have a little fun time with the star of the movie: Tara Benchley, one of his favourite actresses.

"You're one hell of a P.A.!" Tara said as Dean left her trailer and grinned at an awkward Sam, a confused Castiel and a scowling Louise, who was holding her head.

"Thanks!" Dean called back. "What's with you, Lou?"

"Ya know, I've got this sorta sixth sense," she said lightly, massaging her migraine. "It gives me one hell of a headache whenever my older brother is out getting some and unfortunately, it's a near-constant thing."

"Your head freaks out when I'm having fun?" Dean blinked as Sam laughed hysterically and Castiel frowned. "Since when?"

"Since I was eighteen," Louise muttered. "And it's never been wrong before."

"So that's how you always seem to know what I'm up to…" Dean said thoughtfully.

"I'm just grateful it doesn't come with visions," Louise said. At this, Sam nearly tripped over with laughter.

"I don't understand," Castiel said blankly.

"Good! I don't want my baby sister spying on me when I'm getting some nookie!" Dean looked horrified at the thought. "That's just wrong!"

Their next case was slightly less fun. One of John's old friends, Deacon, needed help with a ghost problem in the Green River County Detention Centre and so Sam and Dean had to let themselves get caught by Agent Henriksen, the FBI agent hell-bent on catching them since the shifter in Milwaukee, and sent to prison. Louise and Castiel stayed nearby to guard the Impala, hiding from Henriksen's determined team – since the prison was male only, it wouldn't have done Louise any good to get caught, not to mention that Castiel's lack of any people skills would have seen him eaten alive in prison, so Sam and Dean were on their own in this one. After getting all the information they needed, Sam and Dean broke out with the help of Deacon and the four of them went to torch the homicidal nurse's bones and get rid of her ghost.

" _My cellmate's a killer_ ," Louise sang softly, a tiny grin on her face, as they drove away.

"Louise," Dean said warningly.

" _Will they give me the chair, or lethal injection, or swing from a rope if you dare_ –"

"Louise, I swear to God that if you sing one more _MCR_ song, I will throw you out of this car, moving or not!"

Louise stopped singing, though she was still smiling. That was the most fun she'd had in a while! Castiel, meanwhile, was giving Dean a wounded puppy look for taking his Father's name in vain.

After that came a djinn in Joliet, Illinois, which managed to get its hands on Dean when he stupidly went after it alone. Dean ended up stuck in a dream world in which Azazel had never come after them and Mary was alive, Dean had a steady girlfriend, Sam and Jess were engaged and Louise was living with Cathy and had a small daughter of her own. Castiel wasn't an angel but instead, he was Castiel Novak – identical twin brother of Jimmy and their best friend. Louise was suspicious at just close Castiel was when Dean seemed to say something more but quickly decided not to. Hell, the only downside to this dream world was that John was dead.

However, this dream world was simply a way of keeping the djinn's victims occupied while it slowly drained them of blood. Dean managed to snap himself out of the dream just in time by 'killing' himself and then they managed to kill the djinn with a silver knife dipped in lamb's blood.

"I'm glad you dug yourself out, Dean," Sam said when it was all over. "Most people would've stayed."

"Lucky me," Dean muttered. "But I gotta tell you, though…you were engaged to Jess, Sam, and you had a daughter, Lou…Aunt Cathy had a grandkid…"

Louise's breath hitched in her throat. Would she have gotten over her irrational hatred of sex in order to have a kid if her life was normal? If she was honest, probably. Just that once.

"And Cas…he was normal. No dickbag angels, no demons, no nothing. He was just that kid from next door who we grew up with, 'cause for some reason the Novaks weren't living in Pontiac."

Castiel's face softened and he laid a tender hand on Dean's shoulder. Louise could see from his wings and his pulsing true form how much Dean's desire for him to just be normal and their best friend, with no obstacles, had touched him.

"I wanted to stay so bad," Dean admitted sadly. "Ever since Dad…all I can think about is how much this job's cost us. We've lost and sacrificed so much…"

"But it's been worth it," Louise said firmly. "We've saved so many people and we're as close as close can be, unlike in that other world! I'd take this crappy life over that other one where we hated each other any day."

When Sam and Castiel were a short distance away, Louise rounded on Dean. He sighed and looked away.

"You're gonna ask about Cas, aren't you?"

"Yep."

"We weren't together, Lou. But…everyone around us was telling us how good we'd be together and how we were dancing around each other and how we were the only two people who didn't know! Hell, djinn you even told me to take him to bed or you'd get it done for us. And I had a girlfriend in that world. Even she was suspicious and kept asking if I liked Cas or not."

Louise snorted.

"Yeah, no. I wouldn't ever do that so that should've been your first clue. But do you like him like that, Dean?"

"Yes. No. Maybe? I dunno! It's just confusing!" Dean growled.

"What's confusing, Dean?"

"I like him, Lou. I like him a frigging lot. I dunno yet if I like him enough to make a move or enough for something serious that'll actually work but I do like him. But I don't like…his body."

Louise blinked.

"What?"

"For one, Jimmy's still in there. His wife and kid are dead but I'm not makin' a move. So that pretty much means that I'm fucked for ever trying anything with Cas."

"Dean –"

"And he's a guy. I know you're convinced that I'm 'not totally straight' but…it's him I like. Thinking about actually doing stuff to him…it kinda freaks me out, Lou."

Louise grimaced sympathetically.

"Does it make you feel sick? 'Cause whenever I think about sex with anyone, I feel like hurling."

"No. Not sick. Just…weirded out."

"So you might be adjusting. Or you might just like him and not his body. That's possible, y'know."

"I know. But how can you be with someone and not screw around with them? Don't sex and love go together?"

"Not necessarily. You sleep around a lot but it doesn't mean you love those girls. Like Tara, back in L.A. If you can have sex without love then why not love without sex?"

Dean shrugged uncomfortably.

"Hey, I'm with you on the Jimmy part. I wouldn't mind so much anyone using my body so long as I wasn't in it, otherwise I'd freak the fuck out. But seriously, I still think it's too early to tell."

"It's been nearly a year since we met him, Lou!"

"And how long have you liked him?"

Dean mumbled something.

"Huh?"

"Since just before he got ripped out of Jimmy."

"Still only about six months. You remember when we were in Lincoln for a month when we were seventeen? One of my friends there told me that she'd been crushing on this guy for two years and she still didn't think she was ready to tell him. It varies, Dean. And since Cas is an angel and has no idea how to act human, I dunno how different he feels. But he does like you, Dean. Trust me. I'm the one who has to put up with the fluffing wings and pretty, happy angel whenever you touch him. Only you know when you're good to go. Don't even ask me how I know all this crap 'cause I haven't known anybody long enough to like 'em for six months."

Dean rolled his eyes and punched her on the arm.

"Shut up, bitch."

"Make me, asshole."


	40. The Ghost of You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> Hooray, we're up to the finale! And it only took us 27 chapters (give or take) to get here! Season 3 next, baby!
> 
> Also, as I said earlier, I do plan for Destiel in this fic (not THIS one but one of the sequels). If that isn't your cup of tea then turn away, though I don't expect it to happen any time soon. But I don't want to go the typical route of 'realise their feelings, have hot sex, love for all of eternity' (not that I don't like that 'cause I do and I'm guilty of writing a couple of those). I wanted to try something different – for example, for Dean to be faced with the uncomfortable truth that he likes this angel in a guy's body but doesn't feel the desire to sleep with him, which is a first for him. I don't wanna explain everything here but I'm experimenting, so bear with me.
> 
> Extra note: this chapter title was based purely on the music video. If you haven't seen it then don't. It's just as painful as having your kidneys ripped out with a butter knife.

**Chapter 40. The Ghost of You**

"Hey, don't forget the extra onions!" Dean demanded as they pulled up at Sunnyside Diner and Sam got out of the car.

"Dude, we're the ones who have to put up with that!" Sam protested. Dean just grinned and Sam got out, sighing.

"See if they've got any pie! Get me some pie!" Dean ordered. Sam just glared and shut the door. "Love me some pie."

"Yes, Dean, we're well aware of your eating habits by now," Louise said acidly.

"I don't understand," Castiel said. "What does Dean eating onions have to do with anything?"

"Trust me, Cas, you don't wanna know," Louise grimaced, clapping him on the shoulder. All of a sudden, the radio started to crackle with static and turned off completely when Dean tried to fix it. As the lights went out completely in the diner, Louise doubled over from the wave of horrible, oily nausea rolling over her. Next to her, Castiel had stiffened.

"Azazel," he hissed. He quickly placed his hands on Dean and Louise and zapped them into the diner but they were too late by milliseconds; the lights had come back on and everyone in the diner was dead!

"Oh, God!" Louise choked, staring down at a customer lying in a pool of blood. Her hands were shaking and her heart was pounding and God, this was just like when Azazel had ripped up her insides and soon the hellhounds would come –

"Louise." Castiel was suddenly standing in front of her and he grabbed her carefully by the biceps. "I can feel your panic. Calm down. You're safe."

Louise closed her eyes, counted to ten in her head and then shakily opened them. When she did, she saw that Dean was standing next to Castiel, staring at her.

"What the hell's up, Lou?" he said. "Since when do you flip out when you see a bit of blood?" Louise looked away. "Answer me!"

"Louise is experiencing trauma from when she was attacked by the hellhound," Castiel said. Louise wanted to strangle him. "She repressed that event until encountering the man killed by Gabriel's alligator and now she suffers flashbacks and distress whenever she is faced with reminders."

"Not just the hellhound," Louise muttered, knowing that there was no way that she could get out of this. "Azazel tearing my insides to shreds as well. And Tom being inside me."

"The hell? That's three months! Why didn't you say anything, Lou?" Dean demanded.

"Can we focus on the fact that Sammy's gone and that Azazel was here?" Louise snapped. "We need help. We need Bobby's help."

She stormed off before Dean or Castiel could say anything.

-LW-

"This is it." Bobby had met them at halfway to his house and they were poring over a map on the side of the road. "All demonic signs and omens over the past month."

"But there's nothing!" Louise said.

"Exactly," Bobby nodded.

"Come on, there's gotta be something!"

"What about the normal, low-level stuff?" Dean said. "You know, like exorcisms."

"That's what I'm telling ya!" Bobby said. "There's nothing!"

"It seems that Azazel is putting his plan into motion," Castiel murmured, his eyes scanning every inch of the map.

"Yeah but what is it?" Dean said in frustration. "And why can't you just zap over and grab Sam?"

"Because I cannot sense him. Azazel appears to have caught wind of me and has warded Sam's location against angels. Even if I knew where he was, it's likely that I would be physically unable to enter."

"Well that's just _great_."

Dean's phone rang suddenly and he answered it and put it on speaker.

"Ash, what you got?" he said.

"Look, it's a big negatory on Sam –"

"Come on, man, you've gotta have something! We're looking at a three thousand mile haystack!"

"– but I did find something. I can't talk on this line, though."

"We don't have time for this!" Louise snapped.

"Make time! Because this –" Ash said something to someone in the background, "– almost definitely helps you find your brother and it's, uh, _huge_. So get here. Now."

He hung up.

"I hate to do this, Cas," Louise said, "but could you –?"

"Of course." Castiel grabbed Dean and Louise and Louise saw his wings open and spread. There was a rustling sound but, unlike all other times when they'd heard this sound, nothing happened. Castiel's brow furrowed and he flapped his wings again but only created a rainstorm of feathers.

"What the –?" she said as dull black feathers, visible to everybody now, cascaded to the ground around Castiel's feet.

"Son of a bitch," Dean muttered.

"It – it appears that I no longer have the ability to fly." Castiel looked so miserable with his half-plucked wings that Louise just wanted to grab him and hug him. But Dean beat her to it, pulling Castiel into a very quick, brief hug and slapping him on the back.

"It's okay, Cas. Let's hit the road. The sooner we get to Ash, the sooner we can find Sam."

Louise waved her hand to gather all of the fallen feathers and then she held them out to Castiel.

"Here," she said quietly. "Didn't think you wanted them left lying around."

Castiel didn't smile but his true form did pulse very softly.

"Thank you, Louise."

"You comin' or what?" Dean yelled.

-LW-

Louise was horrified when they pulled up to the Roadhouse – or, rather, what was left of it. Her stomach immediately threatened to turn itself inside out.

"Oh my God…" she whispered. The Roadhouse was completely gone – burned to the ground!

"What the hell?" Dean said.

"C'mon," Louise said quietly. They got out of the car and slowly trudged among the remains of the Roadhouse, trying to find something that hadn't been burnt to a crisp.

"You see Ellen?" Dean said.

"No. No Ash, either," Bobby replied. But Dean suddenly bent down and picked up a watch attached to a very burnt arm and Louise had to turn away and dry heave. Castiel, meanwhile, stared around at the ruins with a melancholy, guilty look.

"Dammit, Ash!" Dean murmured.

"What the hell did he know?" Louise rasped as they quickly got out of the ruins of the Roadhouse. "We don't know where Ellen is or if she's alive and we've got no clue what Ash found out! Now how are we s'posed to find Sam?"

"This is my fault," Castiel said mournfully. "If I was not so useless –"

"Hey, quit blaming yourself," Dean snapped. "Not your fault that your wings decided to go kaput, okay?"

Castiel didn't answer.

"You capiche?"

"Yeah, I – I capiche."

They drove in silence, until Castiel suddenly went rigid.

"Cas?" Louise said immediately, looking around. "What's up?"

"It's Sam." Castiel's head was tilted and he was staring up at the roof of the Impala. "He's – praying to me."

Dean immediately pulled over and turned in his seat. Behind them, Bobby's car slowed down and stopped and Bobby got out and came to see what was wrong.

"What? What's he saying?" Dean demanded.

"He…is telling me his location," Castiel said slowly. "He thinks that he is in Cold Oak, South Dakota. And he also says that he is with four other psychics like him. Ava and somebody called Andy are among them."

"So Ava's okay!" Louise said in relief. They'd all been worried after going to check on Ava in the aftermath of Gordon's attack and finding that she was missing, with her fiancé dead and sulfur everywhere.

"More importantly, Sam's okay!" Dean said. "Get ready, 'cause I'm steppin' on it."

-LW-

When they finally reached the stretch of woods that Bobby said surrounded Cold Oak, the four of them couldn't get out of the car quick enough. Dean flung the trunk open so that they could grab a gun and flashlight each (though Castiel expressed distaste at being given a weapon other than his angel blade) and then they turned and ran into the woods as fast as they could, praying desperately that they weren't too late to save Sam.

"We made it!" Louise wheezed as they burst through the trees. They didn't have the strength to run anymore so they walked as fast as possible through the town, calling out Sam's name.

"I can sense him now that we are here," Castiel said. "He's here."

"Look! Over there!" Louise pointed at the figure of Sam a little way away.

"Sam!" Dean shouted. Sam turned in their direction and started to limp over, grinning at them while clutching his arm.

"Dean! Louise!" Sam called back. The figure of a dark man in army clothing loomed behind him, a wicked-looking knife in his hand, and Louise's stomach dropped.

"Sam, look out!" Dean yelled as they increased their pace to a run, ignoring the stitches in their sides.

Time slowed down for Louise. She could only watch helplessly as the man lunged at Sam and plunged the knife deep in her little brother's back, twisting as he did so, and no amount of screaming from her could stop it. Gasping, Sam fell to his knees, his eyes fluttering.

"NOOOO!" Dean bellowed.

"SAM!" Louise shrieked. Bobby chased after the guy who had stabbed Sam, while Dean and Louise slid to the ground and clutched at Sam.

"No! Sam!" Dean cried. Sam fell forward onto Dean's shoulder, blood pooling in his mouth, and Dean scrabbled at the hole in his back, trying desperately to stem the flow of blood.

"Sammy, come on, you'll be alright!" Louise babbled, tears streaming down her face as she tried to apply pressure to Sam's wound. Her baby brother's eyes were half-shut, his mouth open and full of blood, and Louise ignored the sinking feeling in her stomach.

"Come on, Sammy!" Dean said frantically. "Look, it's – it's not even that bad! We'll fix you up and you'll be good to go!"

Sam's head just lolled on Dean's shoulder. Louise sobbed even harder, knowing deep down that there was nothing she could do for Sam, that he was going to die and they couldn't stop it. In what was probably the hardest thing she'd ever done in her life, she let go of him. But this was so that she could pull her black _MCR_ shirt off, revealing a tank top underneath.

"Listen, Sammy, we'll patch you up, okay!" Dean rambled as Louise hurriedly began to try and stem the flow of blood from Sam's wound. "You'll be just fine. We'll take care of you, you'll see! C'mon, I've got you. Lou's here too! That's our job, right? We've gotta look out for our pain-in-the-ass little brother! Come on, Sam! Sammy!"

To Louise's horror, Sam's eyes slid shut and he slumped forward.

"No! No, no, no, no, c'mon, Sammy!" she howled. But Sam didn't move, so she turned around to face Castiel, who was standing helplessly to the side and not watching. "Cas! You've gotta heal him, please, Cas! Please!"

"I – I don't have that power anymore –"

"THEN TRY! JUST TRY, DAMMIT!"

Though it physically pained her, Louise moved aside to let Castiel kneel down and touch Sam's wound. His hand glowed faintly and for a moment, a spark of hope ignited inside Louise. But then the light sputtered out and Louise felt that spark snuff out.

"SAM!" Dean roared. Louise's eyes remained glued on Sam's still form as she sobbed her heart out. Sam was dead. Gone.

Her baby brother was dead. And there was nothing they could do.


	41. Disenchanted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Louise sings to a corpse and Dean makes a bad decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> The song in this chapter (Disenchanted by MCR) is one of my absolute favourite songs. It's absolutely heartbreaking and describes Sam and Dean's lives perfectly and honestly, you'll understand why I chose it if you listen to it while reading or at least look up the lyrics.

**Chapter 41. Disenchanted**

"Here. Brought ya some food."

"Not hungry, Bobby," Louise whispered hoarsely, her eyes never leaving the cold body of her baby brother. It had been two days since he had died and two days since she had seen Castiel since blowing up at him.

" _Louise." Louise felt a hand on her shoulder. "I'm –"_

_An irrational, burning anger welled up in her._

" _YOU DON'T GET TO SAY YOU'RE SORRY!" she bellowed at Castiel, who looked startled. "YOU BRING HIM BACK RIGHT NOW!"_

" _I can't."_

" _THEN WHAT USE ARE YOU, HUH? WHAT USE ARE YOU WHEN YOU CAN'T BRING OUR BABY BROTHER BACK? SAMMY'S DEAD AND YOU CAN'T FUCKING DO ANYTHING BUT APOLOGISE, CAN YOU? WHY DID YOU BRING ME BACK AND NOT SAM?"_

" _Louise –"_

" _JUST GET THE HELL AWAY, CAS! GO!"_

"You should eat something." Bobby's persistence snapped Louise out of her sickening memory.

"We're fine!" Dean snapped. Bobby took a swig from his flask.

"I hate to bring it up but don't you think it's time that we…you know…bury him?"

"No," Dean and Louise said immediately. They resisted all attempts to drag them away from Sam and when Bobby told them that they had to focus on what was coming, they snapped.

"Let it burn!" Dean yelled. "Lou and I, we've given enough! And for what? A dead brother? If you know what's good for you, you'll turn around and get the hell outta here!"

Bobby remained where he was.

"Go! Scram!" Dean yelled. He paused and then sighed. "I – I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please, just go."

"Ya know where I'll be," Bobby said before leaving the room. A few moments passed, in which Louise took Sam's cold hand and started to sob again. Dean suddenly began to speak, making her jump.

"When we were little, Sammy, and you weren't more than five, you started asking questions. Why didn't we have a mom? Why did we always move around? Why was Lou our sister when she had a different mom and Dad wasn't her real dad? Where'd Dad go whenever he took off for days? I remember I begged you, 'Quit asking, Sammy. You don't want to know.' I just wanted you to be a kid…just a little bit longer. I always tried to protect you and Lou…keep you two safe…Dad didn't even have to tell me. It was always my responsibility, you know? I had one job…and I screwed it up."

A stunned Louise went to put a hand on Dean's shoulder but he shrugged it off.

"I'm sorry, Sammy." Dean wiped his eyes. "I guess that's just what I do. I let down the people I love. I let Dad down. And now I just let you down. How am I s'posed to live with that?"

Dean was now crying, which just made Louise cry harder.

"What am I supposed to do, Sammy? WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?"

Breathing heavily after his last outburst, Dean snatched up the Impala keys and stormed out of the room.

-LW-

Castiel looked up at the sky and frowned. He knew that Louise didn't mean what she'd yelled at him back in Cold Oak. Her brother had just died and she was grieving and lashing out at anybody around her. Castiel understood that this was a normal human reaction. But it still hurt deeply and he couldn't help but replay her words over and over again in his head.

Why had he fallen? Why did he even think that this would be a good idea? Now he was useless to the Winchesters! Powerless! All he wanted at the moment was to take away Louise and Dean's pain but he couldn't. He was useless!

Castiel needed help. And this definitely qualified as an emergency. So he bowed his head and began to pray.

"Sariel. Please. I require help…"

-LW-

Moving for the first time since Dean had left, Louise took Sam's hand and began to stroke his hair and sing softly.

" _Well I was there on the day they sold the cause for the queen. And when the lights all went out, we watched our lives on the screen. I hate the ending myself but it started with an alright scene_."

Louise began to sob but she forced herself to keep singing.

" _It was the roar of the crowd that gave me heartache to sing. It was a lie when they smiled and said, 'You won't feel a thing.' And as we ran from the cops, we laughed so hard it would sting_."

A few tears dripped onto Sam's face. Louise squeezed his hand harder.

" _If I'm so wrong, how can you listen all night long? Now will it matter after I'm gone? Because you never learned a goddamn thing. You're just a sad song with nothing to say about a lifelong wait for a hospital stay. And if you think that I'm wrong, this never meant nothing to you_."

The further into the song Louise got, the harder she started to cry. By the time she got to the final words, her words were barely discernible but she forced herself to keep going. For her brother.

" _At all…_ " she whispered. She leaned over and pressed a kiss to Sam's forehead and that was the thing that broke the dam inside her. Still leaning over Sam's pale face, she shook as she was wracked with sobs and she prayed with every fibre of her being for someone – _anyone_ – to bring him back! He didn't deserve this!

"Cas!" she howled. "C-Cas! Please!"

It took a few seconds before she heard the sound of footsteps behind her. Feeling Castiel's familiar presence, she jumped up and threw her arms around him, sobbing into his trench coat.

"I'm s-sorry!" she wailed. "I d-didn't mean it! We d-don't care how powerful you are! Please – please don't leave us! D-Don't leave us like S-Sammy!"

When Castiel hugged her back, Louise absently noted that he was getting a lot better at this human affection thing.

"I won't leave you, Louise. I know that you were grieving and simply lashed out at me. And I apologise that I cannot bring Sam back."

"Don't apologise, C-Cas! N-Not your fault!"

As she continued to cry, Louise told herself that she needed to get a hold of herself and stop flinging herself dramatically into her best friend's arms and sobbing like a weak little female. Why did she have to be the emotionally unstable one just because she was a girl?

When her sobs finally died down to hiccups, Louise closed her eyes and focused on breathing deeply and stemming her tears completely. Castiel continued to hold her awkwardly until Louise finally felt that she was back in control and pulled away.

"Thanks, Cas," she said stuffily. "We don't thank you enough for putting up with all our crap."

"That is what friends do, isn't it?"

"Y-Yeah."

Louise sank back down next to Sam's body until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Come for a walk, Louise," Castiel said quietly. "You have been sitting here for two days."

"No," Louise said stubbornly. "Stop trying to take my mind off Sam."

"I am not trying to take your mind off Sam. I simply think that some fresh air would benefit you and your mental state."

"Cas –"

"Just outside the building. You can stand there and I will stand there with you. Please, Louise. Bobby and I are worried about you and Dean."

Louise now felt a stab of guilt for worrying Castiel and Bobby so much. Castiel had a point. What harm would some fresh air do? And besides, she had to agree that if she stayed here any longer with Sam's body, she was going to snap again.

"Fine. But I'm not walking and I'm not talking about my feelings."

The corners of Castiel's mouth twitched.

"Very well."

Louise leaned down to press one more kiss to Sam's forehead and then she stood up and allowed Castiel to guide her from the room. Outside, she closed her eyes and breathed in the cool, sharp air, refusing to admit that Castiel had been right and this was beneficial.

"I was correct. The fresh air appears to be doing you good."

"Shut up, Cas."

Louise leaned against the wall of the building, while Castiel stood next to her. There was silence for a moment.

"What am I supposed to do, Cas? Sam's my baby brother! He can't be dead! He just can't be!"

"I'm sorry, Louise. I truly do wish that I could bring Sam back."

"It's okay. Really. You gave up your powers for us and I snapped and yelled at you. I shouldn't've done that."

"I already forgave you."

Louise looked down, blinking back tears.

"Why?" she said brokenly. "Why do I get to live? Why should I get a magical do-over and Sam doesn't? What makes me so special?"

"Louise –"

"I shouldn't be alive, Cas! I should be rotting, not Sam! Why couldn't I just stay dead? Just – why? After all the crap I've done?"

Castiel turned to face Louise, who just turned away.

"You deserve to live just as much as anybody else, Louise. If Sam was alive then what would he say?"

"I don't care what he'd say. _I'm_ the big sister! _I_ should be dead, not him!"

"And Dean would still be as grief-stricken as he is now. You are his little sister and I imagine that he feels just as bad as you do. As a matter of fact, where is Dean?"

"I dunno. Said he was going for a drive. That's what he does whenever he's really upset. I just hope he isn't doing anything stupid. Last thing I need is to clean up after one of his angry messes again."

-LW-

"You can have my soul," Dean said firmly. "There are hundreds of other demons out there who'd love to get their hands on it but it's all yours. Just bring Sam back and give me ten years and then you come for me."

"You're joking," the demon scoffed.

"That's the deal you give everyone else."

"But you're not everybody else. And why would I want to give you anything? You trapped me and nearly reneged on our deal last time. Keep your gutter soul. It's too tarnished anyway."

"Nine years."

"No."

"Eight years."

"You keep going, I'll keep saying no."

"Five years and I pay up. That's my last offer – five years or no deal."

The demon stepped towards Dean and leaned in. Dean prepared himself for the kiss.

"Then no deal," she whispered. Dean fumed. Why wouldn't she just give him what he wanted? How hard was it to bring Sammy back?

"Fine," he spat.

"Fine," the demon said cheerfully, turning around and walking off. "Make sure you bury Sam before he starts stinking up the joint."

Dean couldn't take it.

"Wait! Please. What do I have to do?"

"First of all, quit grovelling. Needy guys are such a turnoff."

She sighed. Dean felt a spark of hope.

"Look…I shouldn't be doing this. I could get in a lot of trouble. But what can I say? I got a blind spot for you, Dean. You're like a…puppy. You're just too fun to play with." She sighed again. "I'll do it."

Dean's insides lit up with triumphant fire.

"You'll bring him back?" he said. This was it. He was going to Hell but it would be worth it! Sammy would be alive and Lou would be there to look out for him!

"I will. And because I'm such a saint, I'll give you one year, and one year only. But here's the thing. If you try and welch or weasel your way out then the deal is off. Sam drops dead and goes back to rotting meat. And the icing on the cake? We'll find a way to get to Louise too. And then you'll know what it's like to be truly alone. But hey, it's a better deal than your dad ever got. What do you say?"

-LW-

Miles away, Sam's eyes flew open and he suddenly bolted upright, breathing heavily. Outside, Castiel and Louise exchanged looks as their senses blazed and they ran back inside, freezing on the spot when they saw Sam sitting up. Louise screamed, the life positively scared out of her.

"Oh my God! SAM!"


	42. Dead!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone lives, someone dies and some poor schmuck gets into a whole lotta crap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> This is it! The last chapter of fic 1! I have all of fic 2 written but I won't be publishing it for at least a week. And even then, it probably won't be daily updates.
> 
> And don't get used to chapters this long. I just had a lot to cram in and I couldn't find a place to split it!
> 
> Thanks to tkdgrl223 for your comment :) And I'd just like to thank everyone who left me comments: Renie and tkdgrl223. Also, thanks to everyone for 256 hits, and 7 kudos!

**Chapter 42. Dead!**

Convinced that she was dreaming, Louise scrambled out of her chair and backed away. Sam looked at her in confusion.

"What the hell's going on?" he said as Castiel entered the room to see what was wrong and froze. "I was at Cold Oak and – and Jake – he stabbed me –"

"You died! You were dead!" Louise said hysterically. " _I sang to your corpse_!"

"It's really him, Louise," Castiel said. "I can see his soul."

"But how the hell –" Louise broke off as a horrifying thought occurred to her. " _Dean_! That stupid, stupid son of a bitch!"

"You think he made a deal?" Sam whispered.

"I _know_ he did! There's no other way you could be alive, Sammy, apart from Cas healing you and you know that he can't! And you know that no other angel would heal you!"

Sam and Louise exchanged wide-eyed looks.

"Let's…just wait until Dean gets back," Louise finally sighed, running a hand through her dark hair. Sam nodded and tried to get up but Louise was immediately by his side, pushing him back down onto the bed. "You just came back from the dead, Sammy. You ain't getting up any time soon."

"You were up and around as soon as you came back," Sam said moodily but he allowed Louise to manhandle him and force a bag of cold food that Bobby had left into his arms.

"Eat," she ordered. Sam shot her a bitchface but opened the bag, pulled out a piece of fried chicken and began to eat.

"I'm sorry," Castiel said suddenly. Sam and Louise stared at him. "If my wings had not failed me then this would not have happened. We would have reached you in time – Dean would not have sold his soul –"

"It's not your fault, Cas," Sam said firmly, though he looked alarmed at the news about Castiel's wings. "You didn't –"

He was cut off by the sound of footsteps. The next minute, Dean appeared in the doorway with a grief-stricken, hopeless and angry look on his face. This quickly vanished when he saw Sam, to be replaced with pure and utter shock.

"What – but – _Sam_?" he spluttered. "You're – _alive_?"

Louise's face darkened.

"Don't play dumb, Dean," she spat. "What the _hell_ did you think you were doing, making a deal with a demon?"

"I –"

"How could you _do_ something like that?"

"Lou –"

"You _know_ what's going to happen to you!"

"I didn't do it!" Dean burst out. Louise paused in the middle of berating Dean, her mouth open. "I wish to God that I _had_ done it! I was two seconds away from kissing that ugly ass bitch! Hell, I thought _you'd_ done something! Maybe summoned another angel or something!"

"Me?" Louise said hysterically. "I was too busy wallowing in self-pity to do anything! And why the fuck would I summon another angel when they're all out to get Cas and would shiv me in a heartbeat?"

"Well, if you didn't do it and Dean didn't do it and Cas can't resurrect then who did?" Sam said.

"There are few creatures that can resurrect," Castiel said. "Why would you think that Louise summoned an angel and not a demon, Dean?"

Dean exhaled.

"Just…what happened to the demon," he said. "The way she croaked…"

" _What do you say?"_

_There wasn't any question of what his answer would be. Dean grabbed the demon and was about to kiss her to seal the deal when she froze and staggered back._

" _What?" she whispered. "No. NO! You shouldn't be here!"_

_She screamed in agony as white light poured out of her eye sockets and she lit up, glowing orange. Dean immediately shielded his eyes and when the light died down, he removed his hand to see the crumpled body of the girl the demon had been possessing on the ground, her eyes burned out._

" _What? No!" Dean yelled. "Come on! That was my only chance to save Sam! You son of a bitch!"_

There was silence after his tale. Castiel's face betrayed no emotion but Louise could see his true form in turmoil.

"An angel," he said. "That is the only being that could do that to a demon."

"So, an angel killed Dean's crossroads demon," Louise frowned. What the hell was going on? "Did they bring Sam back too?"

"I can't think of any angel who would have interfered in this way," Castiel said. "Unless…"

This time, the surprise was visible on his face.

"I prayed," he murmured. "I prayed for nir help. Ne must have answered."

"Who?" Dean demanded. Castiel just shook his head and slowly walked outside, staring up at the sky. "Well, that solves everything."

Louise rolled her eyes and followed Castiel outside with Sam and Dean.

"Did you do this?" the angel was saying, looking up at the clouds. "Did you answer my prayer, Sariel?"

Louise froze, recognising the name. That was one of the archangels she'd read about! She waited for a response but there wasn't one.

"That was anti-climactic," Dean commented. Castiel scowled in frustration.

"Why won't you answer me?" he said. "Why could you not talk to me when you saved Sam and Dean?"

He got no reply.

"Let's just be grateful that they saved Sam and Dean," Louise said gently, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Nobody's going to Hell!"

"Except the world," Dean said. "Now that Azazel's got that guy –"

"Jake," Sam put in.

"Sammy, we don't care what the guy who tried to kill you is called," Louise said frostily.

"– what's he gonna do with him?"

"I don't know," Castiel said. "But we must stop him before he can carry out his plan."

"Which is what?" Louise said. "We know nothing about what he's doing. We don't know where he or Jake are and we've got nobody to turn to except Bobby. What the hell do we do?"

"We could see if anyone at the Roadhouse knows anything," Sam said. A shard of ice seemed to stab Louise in the gut. Dean swallowed and looked away and Castiel found the ground very interesting all of a sudden. "What? What is it, guys?"

Louise and Dean had a mental battle to decide who would tell Sam. But they were both saved by Castiel.

"The Roadhouse burned to the ground," he said mournfully. "Ash is dead, as are many other hunters, and Ellen most likely is as well."

Sam's mouth dropped and he blinked back tears.

"Demons?" he said quietly.

"We think so," Dean said heavily. "Ash found something, so we think they were trying to silence him."

"What'd he find?"

"Bobby's on that now."

"Let's go, then!"

-LW-

Bobby was stunned for all of a minute to see Sam alive and perfectly healed before incorrectly putting the pieces together and blasting the crap out of him while Sam, Louise and Castiel watched helplessly.

"Ya stupid idiot!" he yelled. "What did ya do? Ya didn't, did ya?"

"No!"

"Ya made a deal? How long did they give ya?"

"Bobby –"

" _How long_?"

"I didn't make any deal, Bobby! And neither did Lou! It was an angel!"

" _What_?"

"I was this close, Bobby. This close. About to kiss her and everything. But then some angel – Sariel, Cas thinks – smote the crap outta her and brought Sammy back. Nobody's goin' to Hell!"

Bobby looked gobsmacked.

"If it helps, Sariel is the angel that helped me escape from Heaven," Castiel said. "I think that this angel being Sariel is quite plausible."

"Then why don't they show their face?"

"If Sariel did appear, your eyes would be burned out of their sockets."

"He doesn't mean that literally, Cas," Dean said. "He means why doesn't Sariel pop on down and talk to us?"

"It is…complicated. Sariel is as loyal to nir older brothers as you all are to each other. Ne does not want to disappoint them –"

"But still wants to do the right thing," Louise finished. "Okay, then."

"So we can't rely on Sariel for any more help," Sam said. "What's –"

A knock on the door distracted them. To their pleasant surprise, it was a shaken but alive Ellen, so they let her inside and tested her for possession but she was clear. She told them that she had survived due to the pure luck of not being in the Roadhouse when it burned down and she pulled out a map marked with crosses that Ash had hidden in a safe for her.

After doing some research, Bobby found that these crosses were abandoned churches that Samuel Colt – the maker of the gun – had built. Each church was connected by a railway line and when they traced out these lines on the map, they formed a pentagram.

"A hundred mile iron Devil's Trap," Louise whispered.

"I've never heard of anything that big," Ellen said in shock.

"And it still works!" Sam said. "I mean, all these omens? They have to be the demons, circling but unable to get in!"

"Well, they're tryin'," Bobby said.

"But what's inside?" Ellen said.

"Nothing except an old cemetery," Dean said. "Can't be that important. Unless…what if Colt wasn't trying to keep the demons _out_? What if he was trying to keep something _in_?"

"That's a cheerful thought," Louise muttered.

"The centre is in Wyoming…" Castiel said worriedly. "I know that there is a Devil's Gate there – a door to Hell, if you will. Perhaps Azazel wishes to open it."

"What happens if he does?" Louise said nervously.

"The forces of Hell will swarm out until the Gate is closed again."

Sam, Dean, Louise, Bobby and Ellen exchanged horrified looks.

"That must be his plan! Let out a demon army!" Louise said. "But could he get inside?"

"This thing's so powerful, ya'd need an A-bomb to destroy it," Bobby snorted. "No way's a demon gettin' inside."

"But I know who could," Sam said with dawning realisation.

' _Jake…'_ Louise thought.

-LW-

"Sariel."

Sariel paused and groaned to nemself before turning around.

"Michael," ne said. Michael favoured nem with a disapproving look.

"Why did you resurrect Sam Winchester?"

"It was the right thing to do. I stopped Dean Winchester from selling his soul –"

"And in doing so, you have only hindered our plans."

"You want to send an innocent man to Hell?"

"It is his destiny, Sariel. He is the Righteous Man. I would use John Winchester but there is no guarantee that he would break."

Sariel shook nir heads.

"I cannot believe you, Michael. I just can't. This can't be what our Father wanted."

"Don't!" Michael barked. Sariel recoiled. "Do _not_ presume to know our Father! This Apocalypse was written by Him and foretold to happen! Nobody can stop it!"

"But –"

"I thought that you were trustworthy, Sariel. I thought that you had redeemed yourself. Clearly, I was wrong."

When Michael was gone, Sariel spread nir massive silver wings and took off, shaking with fury.

' _I_ have _redeemed myself!'_ ne thought. _'It's been millennia! But our Father told us to love all humans as we loved Him and guide them! How can Michael send an innocent man to Hell?'_

Well, Sariel had done nir part. Ne had smote the demon that was going to buy Dean's soul and then brought Sam back to life. Hopefully, this was enough to postpone the Apocalypse and Castiel could prevent Dean from ever ending up in Hell. So long as Dean or another righteous man never broke in Hell, the Apocalypse could not happen and Sariel doubted that Heaven and Hell cared about or even knew who the other righteous men were. Everything would be just fine.

-LW-

When Jake entered the cemetery in Wyoming, Louise felt her blood boil. There was the son of a bitch who'd dared to lay a finger on her baby brother! When Jake approached the crypt, the small group in the shadows took their chance.

"Howdy, Jake," Sam said as they emerged from hiding with raised guns (or, in Castiel's case, his blade).

"What?" Jake stared at Sam in shock. "You were dead. I killed you – cut clean through your spinal cord. You can't be alive. You can't be."

"Guess I've just got friends in high places. Step away from the crypt, Jake."

"And if I don't?" Jake raised the gun in his hand. Sam, Dean, Louise and Bobby exchanged stunned looks. It was the Colt!

"Where did you get that?" Dean growled.

"Demon gave it to me. Why? This yours?"

"How the hell did Azazel get his hands on it?" Louise hissed. "It was secure! Traps everywhere! There's no way he could have gotten it!"

Next to her, she noticed Castiel grimace in pain and raise a hand to his forehead. What was that about? There would be time to ask later.

"Don't know what you're talking about. Don't care. Just do me a favour and put that gun to your head, okay?"

To her horror, Louise found her arm moving up to hold her gun right at her temple. She whimpered and tried to pull the gun away but found that she couldn't. Not even using her telekinesis helped, since she couldn't use it on herself!

"Lou!" Dean shouted.

"That Ava girl was right," Jake commented. "Once you give in to it, there's all sorts of new Jedi mind tricks you can learn."

"Let her go," Sam snarled.

"Shoot him!" Louise said shakily. Jake shook his head.

"You'll be mopping up skull before you get a shot off. Everybody, drop your weapons. Except you, sweetheart."

Sam, Dean, Bobby and Ellen quickly dropped their guns. Castiel, however, stepped toward Louise.

"Back away," Jake ordered. Castiel ignored him. "I said, back away!"

"Your mind tricks cannot influence me," Castiel growled, reaching out to pull the gun out of Louise's hand.

"Fine. Come over here, missy."

Louise felt her legs move of their own accord, taking her over next to Jake. She shot a terrified look at the others but they couldn't move.

"Thank you."

Jake turned to the crypt and inserted the Colt into the hole. Castiel was immediately by Louise's side while Jake was distracted – so fast that she could have sworn that he'd zapped himself if she didn't know that he was powerless – and grabbed her, pulling the gun away and pinning her arms to her side. The minute she was out of danger, the other four jumped into action and Jake suddenly had four small holes in his back. As he collapsed, Sam walked over to stand over him.

"Please…don't…" Jake choked, his mouth full of blood. Sam just raised his gun and shot Jake three times in the chest furiously, splattering blood everywhere. Everybody stared at him until they noticed the engravings on the crypt begin to spin and then stop.

"Oh, crap," Bobby said. "Take cover! It's Hell!"

Louise reached out to summon the Colt to her hand and then all five of them sprinted and jumped behind tombstones just as the doors burst open. A massive black cloud poured out in a continuous stream, small trails of smoke breaking off here and there.

"We're too late!" Louise yelled. "What do we do, Cas?"

"Close the Gate!" Castiel bellowed. "We must prevent as many demons as possible from escaping!"

They ran to try and shove the doors shut. But Louise suddenly felt a very familiar, sickening presence and she let go of the doors and whirled around to see a grey-haired man standing nearby. He raised his hand and the Colt was ripped away from her and flew to him. Dean turned around when Louise let out a cry.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing with a man's weapon?" Azazel tutted. With a wave of his hand, Louise and Dean were sent hurtling away and Dean hit his head on a tombstone, while Louise was pinned to a large stone cross in a pose that was very recognisable. Azazel sure did have a twisted sense of humour.

"Dean! Louise!" Sam ran towards them but Azazel just sent him flying into a tree.

"Well, ain't this a mess?" the yellow-eyed demon said. "I mean, great work on getting Sammy back in the game! I wasn't counting on that but I'm glad – I liked him better than Jake. But resorting to using angels? Really?"

"You just mad that you didn't get your claws into Dean's soul?" Louise snarled.

"Actually, yes," Azazel sighed. "I really needed him in Hell. Nefarious plot purposes and all. And then your winged boy toy over there had to go and screw everything up. So now I'm mad."

He approached Dean and said something that Sam and Louise couldn't make out, though it had to be pretty disturbing for Dean to look that horrified.

"Leave them alone, Azazel." With the Devil's Gate now closed, Castiel was free to confront Azazel, his eyes blazing. "You poor, pitiful excuse for a being."

"Cassie!" Azazel said in delight. "Well, you're one to talk. Look at you! Falling and everything! Angel after my own heart. Must be those black wings of yours."

There was no visible change in Castiel's demeanour but Louise could see his true form pulsating furiously.

"I am nothing like you," Castiel snarled. He took a step towards Azazel but the demon just raised his eyebrows and cocked the Colt. Louise immediately knew what was going to happen.

"NO!" she shrieked. "NO!"

But Azazel did it anyway. The Colt went off with a loud BANG and the last bullet in the gun lodged itself right in Castiel's heart. The angel looked down, seemingly puzzled, and then his true form begin to expand and brighten, as though it was imploding on itself. Louise began to howl hysterically at Castiel's dying screams and Sam and Dean's anguished yells and when the light died down, she saw through the tears in her eyes that Castiel was lying on the ground, his limbs sprawled awkwardly and the ashy imprints of his wings burned into the grass.

"CAS!" she screamed.

"Too bad, really," Azazel said mock-sadly. "I liked that little wayward angel."

An intense hatred for this demon began to bubble and boil inside Louise. He'd taken everything from her! He'd infected Sam with demon blood! He'd killed her mom and aunt and turned John into a revenge-driven ass! He'd ruined the lives of all these special children! He'd possessed Dean for months! His children had possessed her and Dean and taken Jimmy and Meg's families away! And now he'd killed Castiel! He wasn't going to get away with this!

With a roar, Louise broke free of her invisible bonds. Azazel only had time to stare at her in shock before she had tackled him to the ground and was punching every bit of him that she could, trying as hard as possible to hit the demon inside rather than the man but failing.

"ALL – YOUR – FUCKING – FAULT!" she shouted with rage, holding out her hand. Castiel's angel blade flew to her and she raised it to stab Azazel but the demon had gathered his wits and shoved a hand out. Louise flew off him, losing her grip on the blade, and hit a nearby tombstone with a sickening CRACK.

"I'm impressed," Azazel said lightly, wiping a trail of blood away from his mouth. "See, sweetheart, this is why the angels wiped out the nephilim. They were too unstable – they couldn't control their emotions. And when they got angry? Well…let's just say that you wouldn't like them when they were mad. You're just like all your cousins, Lou."

Azazel's words pierced Louise like a dagger. She felt her fury bleed out of her and she slumped against the tombstone, her limbs heavy. The demon was right! She _was_ just like all the other nephilim! Would it really be so bad if Azazel gutted her?

"Hey!"

Azazel turned but it was too late; Dean had grabbed the forgotten angel blade and he thrust it up, straight into Azazel's heart. The demon lit up, skeleton glowing an ominous orange, and when Dean pulled the bloody blade out of Azazel's body, it collapsed. Its eyes were now blue instead of yellow.

"That's for Mom and Aunt Cathy and Dad and Cas, you son of a bitch," Dean spat. He offered a hand to Louise and helped her up and she immediately ran over to Castiel's body and sank down next to it, sobbing and trying not to touch the wing imprints. His eyes were closed – thankfully – and he looked as though he was sleeping, except for the bloody stain over his heart.

"CAS! JIMMY!"

-LW-

Jimmy blinked. Where was he? The last thing he remembered was saying yes to Castiel back at the gas station and then…nothing. Just brilliant, fiery white light. So why was he back at home in Pontiac?

Keeping his guard up, Jimmy warily opened the front door and trudged inside. Everything was pristine and perfect, just like normal. But there was something… _strange_ about the place. As though it was _too_ homey.

"Jimmy!" Jimmy whirled around and his heart stopped.

"A-Amelia?" he croaked. "But – I –"

"Is it really you?" Amelia Novak whispered, taking a step forward.

"Yeah. But – But I don't –"

"Daddy!" A little blonde blur leapt at Jimmy and he caught it automatically. His mouth dropped when he looked down.

"C-Claire? But – you're both dead –"

A memory flashed across his mind of a yellow-eyed man shooting him in the chest and then a brilliant explosion of light. Another memory than swam into the forefront of his mind.

" _Can I tell you another secret? Cas gave me a bit of a sneak peek at Heaven. Amelia and Claire…they're up there, reliving all their best moments. That's what Heaven is; your own little bit of paradise where you replay all your best memories. And if they got lucky and they're soul mates – which you'd think a mom and small child would be – then they're together."_

"I'm in Heaven," he whispered. "Melia…Claire…it's really you…I'm not dreaming…"

"You came home, Daddy!" Claire said. When Jimmy let go of her, Amelia embraced him and drew him in for a long kiss.

"You're home now, Jimmy," she murmured. Jimmy let a wide smile slip across his face.

"Yeah. I'm home now."

-LW-

Sixteen year old Adam Milligan closed the front door behind him with a relieved sigh. School was such a drag! But he had to do well if he wanted to become a doctor. He probably wouldn't even have considered this as a career option if not for his mother, who worked long hours as a nurse at the local hospital. Someday, he wanted to help save people too!

"Mom! I'm home!" he called. There was no response but this didn't bother Adam; she was probably just at work again. Dumping his schoolbag, he trudged to the kitchen to make himself a snack and drink but he froze in the doorway and let out a bloodcurdling scream.

"MOM!"

Kate Milligan was lying on the ground in a pool of blood, a knife sticking out of her stomach. Adam immediately knew that she was dead, though this didn't stop him from running over and sinking down next to her, crying and babbling and begging for her to wake up.

"Quit your whining," a voice said. Adam looked up to see his best friend, Lauren Parker, standing in front of him. He should have wondered just what Lauren was doing there but his gaze was instead drawn to her eyes.

They were blood red.

"L-Lauren?" he croaked. The red faded from Lauren's eyes, leaving pale blue.

"Not quite," Lauren giggled.

"What are you? What do you want?"

Not-Lauren crouched down next to Adam.

"I want to help," she whispered. "What happened to your mom was a horrible thing! But I can make it better."

"How? How could you possibly fix this?"

Not-Lauren smiled.

"I could bring her back. You could have your mom back and it would be like this never happened."

Adam gaped. He looked down at the bloody corpse of his mother and then looked back up at his not-friend.

"What do I have to do?" he demanded. Not-Lauren's eyes gleamed.

"I just need some payment," she said. "You won't even have to cough up for a year!"

"What do you want? I'll get whatever you want."

Not-Lauren leaned in close.

"Your soul," she whispered. Adam stared at her in shock.

"M-My _soul_?"

"Yep. You cash in your soul, I bring Mommy back from the dead and you get a whole year before I drag you to Hell."

Hell. Freaking Hell. Well, why not? He was talking to his friend who wasn't quite his friend, so why couldn't Hell be real? There was a brief moment in which Adam nearly chickened out; after all, who wanted to go to Hell? It was the place of eternal torture for wicked souls! But then he remembered everything that his mother had done for him; everything that Kate Milligan had sacrificed for him so that she could raise him as a single mother and make sure that he had a good life. Would Kate have sold her soul for him if she was in his position?

Adam knew the answer to that straight away.

"Deal," he said. Not-Lauren's smile widened and she grabbed him and pulled him in for a kiss. Adam spluttered in surprise but it was over before he could push her away.

"What the hell?" he growled.

"How do you think deals are made, dumbass?" Not-Lauren said. "See ya in one year."

She threw her head back and black smoke poured out of her mouth amidst a pained scream. Lauren collapsed to the floor but Adam was focused on his mother, who had begun to cough and choke in deep breaths.

"Adam?" Kate rasped. "What's going on?"

Adam grinned toothily.

"It's okay, Mom." He'd worry about going to Hell later. "You're okay."


	43. Sneak Peek

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a sneak peek at fic 2 of the series!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I don't own SPN.
> 
> So…I'm not dead! I was just finishing off fic 3 before I started posting the sequel to this and I'm very nearly done – I've about finished chapter 10, then there's probably one more chapter and fic 3 will be finished. Since I'm not allowed to post just author's notes as chapters, I thought I'd give y'all a quick peek at what to expect from the sequel, which will be titled 'Blood is Thicker' and will be up tomorrow night! Here are small excerpts from the fic – one from each chapter! Enjoy!

"And there's a third reason. Tell me, Adam. Who's your father?"

Adam blinked, wondering what this had to do with anything.

"Uh…John Winchester. Don't know him much. He used to drop 'round on my birthday but that's about it. Wait. Don't tell me. He's a hunter?"

"Was. Killed by a demon last year. Though last I heard, these guys offed him last week."

Adam looked down. He hadn't known John very well but the man was still his father and the news of his death made his insides curl. He was officially an orphan!

"What does Dad have to do with anything?"

The blonde grinned widely.

"That's the thing. These guys? They'd do _anything_ to help family. Anything. And I'll tell you what?"

Adam began to feel sick again.

"Three guesses who their father is, kiddo. And the first two don't count."

-LW-

"I know," Adam snapped. "But she's done a hell of a lot more for me than you, so stop trash-talking her. My mom's dead – twice, mind you! – not to mention that I'm going to Hell in a year! I am about _this_ close to having a mental breakdown!"

The woman's eyebrows rose. Adam eyed the blade in her hand nervously, hoping that she didn't run him through with it.

-LW-

"Why should we help you?" Dean said. "Sounds like you knew perfectly well what you were doing."

"Yeah and I was perfectly ready to accept it," Adam hissed. "I knew exactly what I'd gotten myself into. I knew I was going to Hell. But then you know what? Another demon came the next day and killed Mom. Again. And since the deal was only to bring her back, I've still got a one-way ticket downstairs."

Louise felt sympathy course throughout her. That was totally not fair! They should've left his mom alone!

"That's the only reason I'm asking for help," Adam finished. "They screwed me over, so I want out. If they brought Sam back and then turned around and killed him and told you that you were still going to Hell, wouldn't you want to get out of the deal?"

-LW-

"I don't know yet. But look, kiddo. Most demon deals are for ten years, then the hounds come calling. Witches get longer, though they belong completely to the demon. Yet they offered Dean one year to bring back Sam and then did the same with you and your mom. Someone wants a Winchester in Hell quick smart and they won't rest until they've got what they want."

Adam gulped and exchanged a wide-eyed look with Sam, Dean and Louise.

-LW-

"You could've just knocked," he forced himself to say, hoping that his voice didn't break or sound weak. The woman grinned, sharp fangs sliding out of her mouth, and Adam noticed that the chick behind her – with dark brown hair, dark jeans and a pale denim jacket – did the same.

"That takes all the surprise out of it," Leather said in the typical 'cool' voice that Adam had been expecting from someone looking like her. "You a friend of Louise Winchester's?"

-LW-

"Gee, I certainly didn't see this coming," Louise said monotonously. "Whoever expected this plot twist?"

-LW-

"Sitting around and bitching isn't going to help anyone! You think you're weak? Then _do something about it_! You know what I did when I was nearly killed because I couldn't get myself free? I got Dean to tie me up again and again and I worked on freeing myself as fast as I could! Dad did the same to him and the two of us did it to Sam! You're only weak if you bitch about it and don't do anything to fix it!"

-LW-

" _Hey, don't cry, Sammy!" Louise soothed when tears slid down Sam's cheeks. "It'll be all better when you wake up. You'll see."_

_Sam just cried harder, so Louise got into bed with him and hugged him close, letting him cry into his chest. She began to hum a lullaby, which just made Dean look away uncomfortably._

" _What?" she said._

" _You're not Mom," Dean muttered. "Or Aunt Cathy. Stop trying to be like them."_

-LW-

"Damn straight," Adam said, a wide smile splitting his face. "Thanks for not being a Grinch and for ignoring the fact that we're supposed to play into the commercialisation of a jacked holiday."

Louise choked on her eggnog.

-LW-

"I'm sure you do."

"Don't be a bitch," Adam said irritably. "My mom was a single mom. So sometimes, I'd be at home and it was far too quiet and I'd feel like going mad. That feeling of being totally alone…it sucks. And I know it's not the same thing you're feeling but…"

-LW-

"Get a room, you two," Louise muttered, feeling sick to her stomach. She did _not_ need to see any demon lovin'!

-LW-

" _Exorcizo te, creatura aquae. In nomine dei patris omnipotentis et in virtute spiritus sancti_ ," she murmured, dropping the rosary into the toilet. "I sure hope that this being toilet water doesn't cancel it out or else we're screwed."

-LW-

"Any particular reason for your…powers?" Henriksen said to Louise. The brunette jerked her head at Bela.

"None that I'm willing to say in front of her."

Bela rolled her eyes.

"Sweetie, I could probably find out in five minutes with the right contacts."

"You do that. But I'm not just blabbing all of my secrets in front of you, _honey_."

-LW-

"But we had a deal!" Bela said.

"Yes. We did. But you failed to uphold your end. Therefore, I'm changing the rules." Crowley smirked at a horrified Bela. "The Colt and a dead Sam Winchester or you'll be going straight to Hell. Toodles, darling."

-LW-

"Run the bastard over, Dean!" Adam bellowed.

-LW-

Louise looked Bela straight in the eyes, rested the barrel of her gun against the other woman's forehead and closed her eyes.

-LW-

"You fucked up the plan, Adam!"

-LW-

"Just following orders, sweetheart. Can't have you stinking up Sammy with your pureness and virtue. And guess what? Baby half-brother's next. Oh, the things I could do to him…"


End file.
